


My Knight in shining...Braces

by RISKY



Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Angst, Attempted Sexual Assault, Bisexual Richie Tozier, F/F, Fem Reddie, First Kiss, Genderbending, Groping, Horny Richie Tozier, Internalized Homophobia, Pining, Richie Tozier Loves Eddie Kaspbrak, Richie Tozier is Bad at Feelings, Richie Tozier is a Mess, Soft Eddie Kaspbrak, allow it luv, damsel in distress cliche...but make it gay, dont worry richie gets there before anything happens xx, eddie kaspbrak is a bABE, hey that rhymed, lEsBiAnSsSsSsSs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-06-03
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:34:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 7
Words: 33,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23780899
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RISKY/pseuds/RISKY
Summary: "After 2 weeks of being ignored by Eddie, Richie walked home alone once again. She had just finished baseball practice and was casually drifting along the road beside the quarry.Richie's blood ran cold.That's when she saw Eddie's bike. The cute pink one she had painted with Beverly and herself. With little daisies clumsily drawn on the crossbar. Stickers on the frame.Completely abandoned on the side of the road. The wheel was still turning.Besides Eddie's bike were two other bikes. One red and rusty, the other painted black.Property of Patrick Hocksetter and Henry Bowers.The cold feeling in her chest faded within seconds, replaced with burning hot fury.Teeth gritted and fists clenched, Rachel Tozier pulled out her baseball bat and quietly made her way down the quarry..."Super self indulgant hero fic. I'll only accept a damsel in distress story if the hero is also a damsel. Peace.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Comments: 74
Kudos: 192





	1. hush hush

**Author's Note:**

> Yooooo Okie dokes heres it is:  
> Edele=Eddie Rachel= Richie (they go by their cannon nicknames)
> 
> There's a flashback to summer where Eddie and Richie are 16-17. 
> 
> In present day Eddie is 18 and Richie is 19.  
> All losers are original genders other than Eddie+Richie
> 
> (TW: Swearing, slurs, explicit content and attempted assault by Patrick+Henry (but being stopped before anything happens because ill literally puke)
> 
> Hope u enjoy xx

Once again, Eddie was avoiding Richie.

Richie couldn’t stand it when Eddie gave her the silent treatment. Not waiting up for her in the mornings and turning her back away when they sat with the other losers to eat lunch.

But the most frustrating part? The absolute worst part of being avoided by Eddie?

It had to be not walking her back home from class.

Despite all of this, Richie had no right to complain. Had no right to moan and bitch and demand for the tiny girl to give her the attention she Oh So CrAvEd

Because that would make her a big fat fucking hypocrite.

_Richie was the one who started avoiding her first._

This whole ghosting game started like 2 weeks ago, but really it all went to shit when Eddie and Richie both received confirmation that they both made it into the same University. Richie was going into their drama programme and Eddie was set to start year 1 of her Finance BA.

Excitement was in the air, both girls overjoyed that they were going to leave Derry together, like they had always dreamed.

The other losers weren’t so far away (With the exception of Bill, who was in the state over and Mike, who planned to take a gap year and stay with his girlfriend and her dad in their guesthouse in Florida, but they all promised to meet up whenever possible).

**It was all so perfect...That was, until Eddie brought up the Idea of living together.**

_Now, something you might not know about Rachel Tozier...is that she is very, very gay._

She had come out to the other losers just a year ago, despite being certain of her sexuality since the age of 14. All the losers had been supportive, Especially Eddie. And although she was grateful that she had such caring friends, it was Eddie’s reaction that held the most weight to her.

I mean, it was Eddie who had made her realize that she was gay in the first place.

_Which leads onto the other thing you might not know about Rachel Tozier...Which was that she was in love with Edele Kaspbrak. Very Very in love._

So when Eddie had suggested that they could move in together once starting university...it made Richie’s blood run cold.

It had been easy to hide her feeling while they were kids, Clumsily gripping the smaller girl’s hands as they walked to the arcade together, sitting her on her lap while watching horror movies at the Aladdin. She never really worried about what the other losers were thinking when she openly asked the freckled girl if she’d leave her window unlocked for her to climb through later in the evening.

It was when 16 year old Eddie came back to Derry after summer that it got a litttttle more difficult for Richie to hide her feelings.

** 2 years ago **

Eddie had practically been dragged away by her mum to spend that summer in Poland. It was her first time riding on a plane and she had told the other losers over and over again how scared she was to go.

_Hearing from Eddie how her mother had drilled into her how dangerous planes were and the statistics of plane crashes per year, then FORCING her to take a plane was just fucking cruel. It made Richie fume with anger. It just showed how openly Sonia liked to string Eddie around when it suited her. Fucking Swine..._

Richie had even devised a plan to hide Eddie in her room, getting her to miss the flight, but unfortunately Richie’s mum had heard her plotting loudly from her room. She told Richie that pulling a stunt like that would only lead to Sonia calling the cops or something...which was probably TRUE but all the _more_ infuriating.

The losers had no choice but to stand a distance away from the Kaspbrak residence, waving at Eddie as she was driven away.

They didn’t see each over again till September.

After 3 months and a few weeks of sleeping , reading comics, playing arcade games and the big event (which was over exaggerated by Maggie) of buying her first sports bra, Richie finally received a call from Beverly, saying that Eddie was back.

She had seen Sonia at the local pharmacy, buying her usual hoard of tablets and sanitizers, antiseptics and whatnot. She had been grumbling loudly about the prices of tape measures...though it made Beverly wonder why she even wanted one in the first place.

“Probably to measure how wide her neck is”, Richie snorted down the phone line.

After laughing together about the little things they had been up too over the past few weeks, Richie hung up the phone and got ready to meet Eddie. She wanted to impress the smaller girl with how much she had changed over the summer, growing a few more inches. She wasn’t exactly thrilled with her tiny triangle boobs, preferring the flat chested look she had been sporting for years but whatever. It’s not like Eddie would give a shit either way.

She was straight after all.

**Shit**. Richie forgot that sometimes... _all the time_.

This reminder put a little damper on her ego as she got ready. No point in making too much effort...it’s not like the girl with the warm baby brown eyes and freckle dusted cheeks would even notice. Fuck.

Richie sighed and put on a ratty old jacket.

As she made her way out the house towards the Kaspbrak residence, Richie passed a girl who was casually sitting on a bench just outside her front yard.

From behind she had wavy chestnut hair, the ends curling slightly. As well as her hair, Richie had a good view of how beautifully the girl’s waist curved inwards, her ass sat on the bench making a pear shape. She appeared to be reading a magazine but Richie couldn’t really tell what sort it was. Not that she was that interested in what the girl was reading.

She was a little more focused on whether this girl was as good looking from the front as she was from behind.

It didn’t take her long to find out.

Slamming the door of the fence surrounding her yard, the girl gasped and turned around, her wide brown eyes meeting with Richie’s blue ones, her freckled face slightly pink as she looked Richie up and down.

“Richie! You fucking dick you grew like ten inches!!”

Richie’s eyes almost bulged from behind her glasses.

**“EDDIE!?!”**

Over the summer, Eddie had been allowed to grow her hair out (with the insistence of her aunts towards her mother, who had always made sure Eddie’s hair was clipped and even around her neck.) Her locks were now more volumous, with slight layers that sweetly cupped the sides of Eddie’s face. Eddie had been staying in a seaside town called Mielno, and had spent the precious hours she could get away from her mother lounging on the beach. Her skin was a deep tan, now with extra little freckles adorning the bridge of her nose and her upper cheeks.

Despite not growing that much taller, Eddie had grown in...other places.

_...And now listen...Richie hated to objectify women. She’s one herself and the concept of anyone looking at her with something devious in mind made her want to retch. But she knew beauty when she saw it._

_Eddie was beautiful before she left that summer...but now..._

_Richie had to come to terms with the fact that Eddie was. Well...she was sexy._

_God, and it was **SO FUCKING HARD** now._

_Harder than ever before. Richie wasn’t out yet, happily comfortable with sneaking a peek at her dad’s old playboys from the safety of her own room. Making half true jokes about how badly she wanted to make out with both Leonardo dicaprio and Kate winslett while watching Titanic with the gang (who just laughed and went “BEEP BEEP RICH”)_

She was gradually coming to terms with her sexuality in her own way, in her OWN TIME.

_...And then pretty princess Kaspbrak had to come home, with her pink lips and her anime eyes, looking thicker than a bowl of oatmeal._

The rest of the losers all had their own different reactions to Eddie’s transformation.

Bill just went out and said, “F...fuck your t...tits are huge”, earning an elbow jab from Bev and a maSSIVE KICK IN THE BALLS FROM RICHIE, which made the stuttering boy fall to the floor, his eyes watering as he swore. (Beverly later told her that was a little too far but...Richie didn’t care lol).

Stan, Bev and Ben were super nice, complimenting Eddie’s new hairstyle; Mike was looking at her as if he’s never actually seen a girl before. Richie snorted to herself.

What a load of _DWEEBS_.

Once Bill recovered from that UNNECISARY (super necessary) attack, he apologized and also told Eddie that she looked good. The small girl said thanks and blushed awkwardly, her arms folded across her chest.

Later that day as the girls of the group walked home from the quarry, Eddie had told both Beverly and Richie that her mum had started measuring her, convinced that this rapid change in her body shape was due to her getting chubby, rather than being blessed by the gods of puberty.

_Richie had almost forgotten what a cunt Sonia was._

“Eddie your mum is literally the female version of Jabba”, Richie reassured her, about to pull Eddie towards her by the waist like she used to (but now hyper aware that this might be perceived as her being super gay and obvious).

Richie settled with an awkward shoulder pat that Eddie thankfully didn’t notice. She was busy glaring up at her.

“My mum is **NOT** female **JABBA** , **RACHEL** ”, Eddie’s glare lingered before she sighed and turned to Beverly, who lovingly wrapped her arms around the small girl.

(“God”, Richie thought to herself, “She makes it looks so easy...”)

“My mum wasn’t always...large”, Eddie had sighed into the crook of Beverly’s collar. “She changed alot after dad died. She was skinny when she was my age...not like me.”

Beverly and Richie looked at each over. It was obvious Sonia had been giving the girl shit for how she had developed over the months.

Beverly shook her head, a soft grin on her face.

“Eddie, I would kill for curves like yours...and did you see everyone else’s reaction? We think you look amazing babe”.

Eddie looked up at the pretty red head and gave her a bright smile.

“Thanks Bev, you always know what to say”.

There was a long pause as the three girls stood there, Eddie and Beverly wrapped up in a bear hug as Richie tried to look casual, focusing on a rock on the floor that she was kneading with her shoe.

Beverly untangled herself from Eddie and looked at Richie, her smile going wider (if that was even possible.)

“How about you Rich”, the red head asked; her voice had a slight teasing hint. “What do you think of Eddie’s new look?”

Richie almost chocked on her own saliva.

“I...I...uh...Eddie...you look”, She was thrown off by this sudden confrontation and was desperately trying to find the magic words that would mask her...hER RAGING BISEXUALISM...

........

“Eddie you...you look nice”.

**(Yowza. You did it Richie)**

Eddie’s eyebrow raised as Beverly giggled into her arm.

“...I gotta go guys, Mum’s still got a curfew” Eddie muttered.

Hugging Beverly again and giving Richie a quick goodbye hug (the taller girl stood completely still, desperately trying to drown out the sensation of Eddie’s boobs pressed against her chest).

“See you guys in class tomorrow!”

As Eddie made her way to her house, Beverly casually walked up to Richie, playfully nudging her shoulder as she coughed out, “Cough* **LOSER** *Cough”.

Richie’s face burned as she looked down at Beverly.

**“What!? What did I do?”**

Beverly giggled.

“Really Richie? Nice?” She folded her arms and motioned towards Eddie’s direction.

“I think you think she looks more than NiCe”.

Richie felt her heart race.

_She already knew that she was Bisexual, she had just started losing the guilt over it, and she had started to open up to the idea that she wasn’t abnormal. She wasn’t dirty._

**_But Richie wasn’t at the stage where she could openly joke about it. Not Yet._ **

“Beverly, I think you don’t know what you’re talking about!” Richie huffed.

Completely missing the grin falling off Beverly’s face, Richie turned her back and practically jogged home.

She avoided Beverly the whole first week back.

** Present day **

****

****

...So yeah, two years later and alot had changed. After coming out to the other losers the year before, Richie was now 19, openly bisexual and ready to start her life as an upcoming comedian, studying in the big city.

_Beverly had regretted any comment she may or may not had made unknowingly towards Richie that the girl was ready to open up about who she was. Although she had a feeling that Richie might have been gay, she never really asked her beforehand (a BIG no no). In consequence to this, knowing how confident Richie appeared, she had wrongly assumed that Richie was comfortable and open about her sexual preferences, horrified that she was wrong and had made her friend uncomfortable and upset._

_Richie said it was all good. All that was in the past and now that she was ready to come out, she felt so much better. It helped that she had good friends and a nice family._

Eddie had grown more confident in her skin, avoiding the contrasting remarks from her mother over her weight, to the wolf whistles and dirty shit that the bowers gang like to spew at her when she walked with the losers to and from school in the early morning’s and late afternoons.

**...The Bowers gang.**

Though not really a gang anymore.

Belch had suddenly disappeared the year before, applying to University behind the others backs. According to the rumours (and there were MANY in Derry) he was studying costume design which was...well alright then.

Vic had decided to go clean, completely cutting himself off from the gang and getting a job at the auto repair shop near the local supermarket. Sure, it had earned him an ass beating, but nowadays he seemed to just be going on with his life. It looked like his girlfriend had a baby coming.

Good for him.

That just left Henry and Patrick. In all honesty, together they were a force to be reckoned with. They didn’t even need any one other than each over to wreak havoc on the town. Henry had failed all of his exams the year before and had decided to rot in the small town. Patrick didn’t even show up during his last year of High school.

The both of them seemed pretty content with staying in Derry, continuing their reign of terror.

And thats what they did.

The losers club were looking forward to be rid of them once they finally left for Uni. God knows Ben never planned to come back to Derry, considering how badly the bowers gang harassed him when he first moved to the dinky little town. All of the losers have had their own individual run-ins with bowers.

At first it was the casual bully routine, being shoved around in town, getting their stuff stolen, yanking pony tails and hurling insults. The cliché petty shit that every bully living in a small town does. It was only when the Losers hit their teens that they really saw the sinister sides of Henry Bowers and Patrick Hocksetter. Other than practically carving Ben’s stomach with a rusty knife, the boys had begun engaging in acts of violence around town. It didn’t take a genius to guess that it was Patrick who was killing of all the stray cats that have been found dead around town.

That Henry had a reputation of following girls home late at night.

Henry bowers...the fucking pervert. He had always been a pig towards girls, but he had gradually gotten worse over the years. Especially towards the girls of the loser club.

It was as if he had a personal vendetta against them.

There was Beverly, who was rumoured to be a slut. Richie, who was rumoured (and is now openly) a dyke. That just left that stuck up little bitch, Edele Kaspbrak. She thinks she’s too good to ride home on the school bus. Too good for cafeteria food, for regular sports lessons. And she was too good to talk to guys like Henry Bowers...

It made him so fucking mad. That fucking snob. He saw her walking to class with that fag, her nose in the air the second Henry came anywhere near. As usual, the stuttering freak and fatass weren’t far behind, forcing him to retreat back into the shadows. He had noticed that the losers had changed over the summer.

Bill was less up to fighting back against him, settling on filthy stares in reply to the insults and jeers Henry threw his way. Beverly was exactly the opposite, finding it easier to scream back insults, at one point even getting held back by Bill. Crazy bitch. Beverly had always been a fucking crazy shit...

The dyke was freakishly gay and now she was freakishly tall. Lard ass was gaining muscle, making him regretful that he had let Belch slip from the gang.

_Not that Belch was welcome back. No, that traitor can go screw himself. If he ever saw Belch again, he was going to tear that fucker apart just you wait and see..._

Stanley had stayed skinny as fuck and was the only one who still looked like he was about to cry when getting singled out by himself and Patrick, which was pleasing to see. What wasn’t so pleasing was the fact that Mike (who was now captain of the football team, and a head taller than himself) was always around to prevent him doing anything major to the little coward. (The most recent attempt had been thwarted by the dark skinned boy, who effortlessly dislocated bower’s jaw in a back alley near the centre of town a few weeks into the start of summer.)

And Edele Kaspbrak changed...boy did she change...

Henry hadn’t even believed it was her at first. He had noticed that the prude wasn’t around the other losers that summer (assuming that she had finally thought herself too good even for her pathetic friend group), but he guessed wrong.

While hanging out at the arcade one Sunday Afternoon, Patrick had punched Henry on the arm and pointed towards the filthy window, where two girls were walking down the street. They looked as if they were in their own world, laughing loudly together while eating ice cream.

“Take a look at the tits next to the queer”, Patrick had sneered.

Henry jabbed Patrick in the rib in retaliation to getting hit and then did a double take at the small girl walking past the entrance of the arcade.

Henry whistled as he watched her walk away back down the street. Her tits weren’t the only part of her that grew over the summer...

Since then, Henry had brought it upon himself to stay on top with the losers.

To remind them who was boss.

To remind Edele Kaspbrak, who was boss.

He was just waiting for the right time, the right moment to let her know this. If she weren’t always surrounded by her cunt friends it would be so much easier. Not a day would pass when the midget wasn’t being followed around by her guard dogs.

No. Henry had no choice but to watch from the shadows. No doubt they were leaving over the summer for university...this would probably be his last chance to do something. ANYTHING.

Whatever it was, it was going to be big. It was going to leave an imprint. A scar. A mark that will follow the losers wherever they went.

Yes, henry was looking forward to that day.

**...and that day was coming sooner than any of them knew...**


	2. Why didnt you say so?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i got some new ideas for what i want to happen, so i extended it a little! Hope you guys will like what happens next xx

**CHAPTER TWO**

_“Oh Richie”_

Eddie batted her long eyelashes, a glazed look of pure love and adoration in her eyes as she brushed her fingers through Richie’s dark tangle of curls. Richie tugged Eddie closer to her chest and tickled the freckled girl, causing her cheeks to go a darker shade of pink as she giggled.

_“I love it when you hold me Richie”_

It was a hot day and both girls were sitting under a tree in the park. Despite being right in the town’s centre, there was a surprising lack of people about. All the shops were closed, the sidewalks were empty.

The only sound in the air were birds tweeting, wind blowing lightly, and Edele Kaspbrak softly laughing.

Her voice sounded like little shards of a diamond tinkling in Richie’s ear.

“Ed’s...” Richie whispered, “I...I...”

“........”

Richie took in a sharp breath of air, her hold on Eddie’s waist tightened slightly. Looking down at the smaller girl, who was gazing up at her with unfiltered devotion and warmth, Richie removed her grasp on the girl’s waist and pulled up her small hand, clutching it tight.

“Eddie, I love you.”

**She did it. She said it.**

Eddie’s smile grew wide on her beautiful face. Grabbing hold of Richie, they both fell flat on their backs onto the warm grass, laughing together in bliss. Lying down, Eddie turned to Richie and wrapped her arms around her. Richie did the same, Eddie’s soft breasts pushed up tight against Richie’s, adoringly gazing into eachovers eyes.

“ _Kiss me_ ”, Eddie whispered

Richie felt a million butterflies in her stomach, fluttering about like crazy. It made her feel like crying holding Eddie like this. Hearing her laugh, watching her smile as she leaned forwards to kiss her...

Richie nuzzled her neck, the smell of vanilla and gingerbread whirled around her senses as she tried not to groan at the sound of Eddie gasping, rubbing circles into her back.

The two girls rolled around together under that tree in the empty park. Not a care for anyone who might see.

Richie pulled away from Eddie’s neck, earning an impatient whimper from the freckled angel below her.

“Eddie, I gotta hear you say it”, Richie panted as she removed her wonky glasses, her eyes never leaving the gasping girl lying before her, “...do...do you love me?”

Eddie laughed, almost out of breath. Her hair was lying wild around her head as she held out her arms towards Richie. “ _I love you_ ”, she said, “ _I’ve always loved you....now will you hold me?_ ”

Richie practically dove onto her.

Desperately kissing anywhere she could reach, her long legs wrapping around the small girl, they both panted loudly. “Tell me you love me”, Richie groaned, her left hand around the back of Eddie’s neck, the other up her pink blazer. “Say it again baby”.

“ _I love you_ ”, Eddie gasped, “ _I love you, I love you I love you I..._ ”

“Say my name sugar”, Richie groaned.

_“MMMmmm I love you so much_ ”, Eddie burrowed her head onto the crook of Richie’s neck,

“ _I love you **Wenty**_ ”.

...Richie stopped.

The wind stopped blowing. The birds stopped chirping.

She looked down at Eddie with a raised brow.

“Uhh...I know I joke about screwing your mum all the time eds”, her voice wobbled awkwardly,

“...but...uh...wasn’t expecting THAT one ...”

Eddie just continued to look up at her dreamily, her small hands wantonly rubbing on Richie’s inner thigh.

_“Kiss me Honey”_

Shaking off whatever THAT was, Richie once again wrapped her arms around Eddie and buried her face into her neck, wildly nipping at the tanned skin.

_“Oh...OoHhHhHhHh wEnTwOrTh BaBy MoRe mOrE....”_

Richie pulled back immediately.

**“EDDIE WHAT THE FU-“**

**...........**

Richie woke up in her room.

The curtains were wide open, bright beams of sunlight blindingly cast across her face. Richie had a sudden wave of sea sickness, her vision was not only blurry, but it was slightly double. She felt like she was moving ...and what the FUCK was that nois **OH GOD OH FUCK EW EW EW.......**

Richie realized that her bed frame was rocking slightly; a loud bumping noise came from the wall behind her.

_“Oh WeNtY hOnEy YeS yEs YeS Oh sWeEtHeArT!!”_

Richie was going to FUCKING hurl.

**“MUM!!?? DAD!??!??! IT’S 9 AM IN THE FUCKING MORNING!!!!**

Richie threw on a dirty pair of jeans, not bothering to change her shirt or brush her teeth (ew).

She slid on her trainers and slammed her bedroom door loudly.

**“COULDN’T YOU AT LEAST WAIT TILL I WAS OUT OF THE FREAKING HOUSE?!?!”**

The thumping noise only continued as Richie gritted her teeth in disgust. She grabbed a whole box of kellogs and smacked shut the front door of the house.

God. That was just...the WORST way to fucking wake up. What did Richie do to deserve parents like that?! _**DISGOSTANG**_!!!!

She shuddered, before lifting the box over her head, coco pops flying everywhere as she chewed a massive mouth full.

Dry as fuck...she should have grabbed the milk on the way out.

Sighing loudly, Richie discarded the (half full box) into the nearest trashcan and made her way to Derry high.

For the last time.

Waiting at the school gate was Beverly, along with Ben and Mike. Mike was grinning at something StUpId (probably another cat video from his girlfriend...Mike loved cat videos...)

Beverly and Ben were chatting away about something ExTrA sTuPiD. Ugh.

**(The way Mike was looking at his phone...like a big goofball...how Beverly and Ben were staring at each over...all OoEy GoeY. It made Richie wanna...wanna...god dammit.)**

“You good Rich?” Mike smiled, looking up from his phone, “Looking a bit paler than usual, bud.”

Richie groaned.

“Woke up to the sound of my parents breeding...AGAIN!”

The three other losers cringed, making Richie laugh out loud.

“Hey man, I’m glad at least SOME Toziers are getting a lil action around here!”

“Beep beep Richie!” A voice sighed. Richie turned around and was met with the sight of Stanley, his eyebrow raised as he held a hand too his hip. Richie shot him a grin, followed by her reaching into her pocket and pulling out her middle finger, making Stan snort.

Shaking his head, the blonde boy passed beside her to greet the others, leaving Richie alone to face Bill, who had just walked up to the gate along with Eddie.

The small girl was glaring silently at her (clean white) shoes, small hands gripped on the handlebars of the pink bicycle Richie and Beverly had gotten and painted for her 18th birthday.

Richie looked at her hands and suddenly had an image in her head, the one from her dream where Eddie was gasping below her. Her hands buried in Richie’s curls as she whispered words of love.

Richie felt her heart beating faster and faster.

Course, the sight of Bill’s arm around her shoulder definitely didn’t make things any better...

About to make a passive aggressive joke about whether Bill planned to leave with or without his arm, Stanley quickly turned back from the others and rested an arm on the tall girl’s shoulder.

“Rich, can I talk to you for a sec?”

Richie turned her head to him, her eyes still on Eddie. Now that she was looking properly, the girl looked a little more upset than angry. Bill was talking to her quietly as she continued looking at the ground, biting her lip. She suddenly looked up at Richie, her face pink as she made eye contact, before turning away, quickly huffing with her nose in the air.

Richie breathed out the breath she was holding, before turning her eyes onto Stanley.

“What’s up Stan the man “She grinned.

The boy looked as if he wanted to bite out a remark about how he hated it when Richie called him that, but mentally decided against it.

He looked behind Richie and then moved back, his arms folded.

“Bowers was following Eddie to class this morning”, He frowned. “He’s been following Eddie alot lately...”

Richie listened in silence, her face blank.

Inside her head, her thoughts were a mess.

This was the first that she’s heard of this? Why didn’t Eddie tell her? Why didn’t she...

“I was with her at the time but...You know how nervous I get when I see Patrick, The blonde admitted, “He’s literally a psychopath, ever since I saw him gut that cat last yea...”

“Wait!” Richie interrupted, “Patrick was there too?”

Stanley shrugged. “If Henry’s around, it means Patrick isn’t too far behind. They’ve always travelled in packs Richie.”

Stanley shuddered slightly, but Richie was lost in her thoughts.

She always felt like Henry had some kind of sick obsession with Eddie. Even when they were kids, he actively sought out the small girl, making more of an effort in terrorising her.

She remembered waiting for Eddie during a movie night at Ben’s house a few years ago, but she never came. The losers had been worried, calling up the Kaspbrak house over and over again till Sonia finally picked up and told them that Eddie wouldn’t be available any time soon (and to “stop calling this instant!!”)

The next day the group had found out the reason she never showed that night.

Just a few hours before they were meant to meet up, Eddie was sent on an errand to the pharmacy to pick up sanitary pads.

Bowers had seen her waiting against Mr. Keen’s register at the pharmacy, walked behind her and smeared dog shit across the back of her dress.

She hadn’t noticed and ended up walking home; crinkling her nose at the odd smell, not knowing it was coming from her. Once she stepped inside her house, she was met with the immediate scream of Sonia Kaspbrak, who abruptly pulled off her dress and yanked her upstairs into the shower.

Eddie had screamed and cried as her mother scrubbed her skin raw under the too hot water. Almost two hours had passed when Sonia decided that Eddie was finally cleansed of any filth.

She left the girl alone in the bath tub, naked and shaking against the tap.

......

Henry was number two in Richie’s “People who deserved to die” list.

**Of course the top of the list was and always will be Sonia.**

Third on that list was Patrick Hocksetter.

As kids, Patrick was as awful as the rest of the gang, but he wasn’t particularly focused on Eddie.

No, he had an equal little something for everyone.

...But that changed after the summer when Eddie came back from Poland.

_It looked like both Patrick and Henry were infatuated with how Eddie had grown that summer. The quiet, prim and proper little girl they liked to knock about for fun was now a woman. It made them want to bully her in other ways..._

Richie saw the way they looked Eddie. She knew what they were thinking as they shrieked at her while walking home after classes were over. Richie knew how bad it affected Eddie, the others agreeing to make sure someone was always around her when walking home from track in the evenings, where no one was really around to prevent anything from happening.

Richie felt her heart drop as she turned back to look at Eddie, her face looking sad as she clicked the chain around her bike onto the stand beside the school entrance.

_She didn’t deserve all this shit. No one deserved it._

Richie walked past Stan (ignoring the boy trying to remind her that Eddie was still pretty fucking mad at her) and made her way towards Eddie. Eddie dropped the chain and turned her attention to Richie, who was looming towards her. She tensed up slightly, before taking a deep breath, folding her arms.

Richie stood in front of her, her arms mirroring Eddies.

“Why didn’t you call me”, Richie asked.

Eddie shuffled around slightly, biting deep into her bottom lip as she tried to avoid looking up at Richie.

_Richie’s frown grew deeper._

“I told you to call me if Henry tried anything Eds. If he ever did anything to you I’d have-“

“What do you care “Eddie muttered.

.....

_Richie couldn’t believe what she had just heard._

“What the fuck do you mean” _WhAt Do YoU cArE?!!_ ”, Richie mimicked her furiously, still in complete disbelief over what Eddie had just said.

_The other losers hovered behind her, the outburst breaking them from their own conversations._

Eddie furrowed her eyebrows and looked up, her brown eyes finally meeting Richies.

“You heard me asshole!” She glowered, “What’s it to you if something happens to me?! You’ve already made it obvious that you can’t wait to ditch me!”

The other losers swooped over, trying (and failing) to talk them down from the sidelines, but Richie was starting to get heated up.

_That would never happen! Richie would never purposely leave Eddie! If anyone was going to get ditched it was going to be **RICHIE**!_

“Why are you so fucking mad that I don’t want to room with you in September!!?” Richie yelled loudly at Eddie, Making her flinch.

_Richie rarely ever yelled at Eddie. The whole situation from the loser’s perspective just looked off._

Eddie shook of her apprehension from Richie yelling at her, her chest thumping hard with adrenaline

“WHY DON’T YOU WANT TO ROOM WITH ME”, Eddie cried back, a desperate tone slipping from her voice.

_Because I’m scared you’ll leave me. Because watching you love someone else would tear me apart. Because your my Eddie Spagheddi and I love you. Because I’m in love with you. I love yo-_

_**“BECAUSE I NEED TO GET AWAY FROM YOU!!!”.** _

Richie stopped.

She looked at Eddie.

Eddie was crying.

“Wait...” She said, “I didn’t mean that...I...”

Richie took a step towards her, her hand reaching out to the smaller girl.

Eddie stepped back.

The other losers awkwardly dispersed between the two girls. Mike and Ben walked over to Richie, Ben picking up Richie’s backpack from the ground and placing it into the unresponsive girl’s arms.

Mike sympathetically patting her on the back, muttering “Give her some space, okay?”

Beverly walked straight over to Eddie and pulled out an unopened packet of tissues, holding it up to the crying girls face. Eddie didn’t make any motion to take one, so Beverly opened it herself and began to dab her face gently.

Putting the tissues into the waste bin beside her, Beverly turned Eddie towards the Gate entrance and put her arms around her as they walked into the courtyard, alongside Stanley and Bill (Who was holding onto the backpack Eddie had flung on the concrete).

Richie silently watched her leave.

**Fuck.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i keep it juicy juicy i get that lunch mMMMMMH!!


	3. F*** Derry High!!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a long one but im reeeeeally happy with how it turned out. I hope you all like it. It's about to get juicy juicy...

**CHAPTER THREE**

School had technically ended a week ago.

The lockers had all been cleared, ready to be used by new students due to start in the New Year. Classrooms were empty, the parking lot only had a few cars around and most of the graduated students were at home. Those who had graduated with guaranteed offers from schools around the country were no doubt already preparing their stuff, ready to be hauled out as soon as possible, while the unlucky students who hadn’t passed or simply didn’t want to go into further education just did whatever they usually did. No matter who passed or failed, there was a mutual relief that none of them would ever have to step foot into Derry high ever again...

...unless you were on a sports team.

...And that’s why the losers were on the school grounds that Sunday, instead of hanging out and excitedly planning their bright futures.

It was hard to believe, but all of the loser’s gang had taken part in an extracurricular activity after school.

For Eddie, Bill and Beverly this was simply another excuse to spend time away from home. A welcome distraction at the end of the school day.

Bill’s parents had never offered to take Bill or Georgie anywhere like the movies or to restaurants or theme parks.

The Denbrough’s didn’t do family bonding.

During winter, Bill had taken it upon himself to bring Georgie with the other losers to the skating rink and had made it into a tradition. Having started at 14, Bill was now pretty agile on the ice. During Junior high the school had established their own ice hockey team and Bill had jumped at the chance to join. He planned to continue it as a hobby while doing his writing course in Autumn.

Stanley had tried to start up a Bird watching club (which was pretty bad-ass if you asked the losers...you had to be fucking brave to do something like that in a place like Derry High...)

Unsurprisingly, this was thwarted by the lack of members, so Stan settled on Chess.

He liked the game enough, sure. He was worried it would get boring...until a really nice girl called Patty Joined the club. She was really good (better than Stan) and when Stan had told her about his bird watching club idea getting turned down, she had told him she would have joined instantly.

He thinks he’s falling in love with her...

Over the summer they planned to stay in touch. He had been excited recently at the news that she planned to apply to the college he had gotten into next year. Patty was like... _really smart_. There was no doubt she would get in, and Stan was already offering to show her around the city, despite the fact he was still in Derry. (lol thats cute)

Beverly was “ _Technically_ ”, a cheerleader...but only in name.

When Ben got into the football team during the start of their final year, the squad (Lead by no other than Greta Keen) had rounded themselves up around Beverly’s locker with fake smiles plastered onto their faces, waiting for her to finish class.

Once the red head was sighted leaving Geometry, she was immediately hunted down by the girls, pulled into the centre of their circle and was grudgingly offered a place on the team by Greta (Who was unsuccessful in keeping a sneer out of her face).

Although she hadn’t accepted initially, the girls (Other than Greta) were surprisingly insistent that “All girls who were dating a member of the football team had to be on the squad”. Apparently it was the custom at Derry High.

_Beverly had thought that it would have taken a little more to become a cheerleader. It didn’t sound like a very good custom...but then again, Derry High wasn’t a very good school..._

With the reassurance from the other girls that it would look good on her University applications, Bev had sighed and given into her fate.

What the hell. It was their final year anyway.

Beverly had managed to attend around 3 games before she got bored of all the somersaulting and flips. She wasn’t any good at it and the other girls knew it. No one tried to convince her to stay when she finally stopped showing up to their meet ups.

Still, Beverly had enough sincerity in her to call Greta up to inform her that she was planning to drop out of the team.

Here’s how that conversation went down:

**Beverly** : Hey Greta? It’s Beverly Marsh

 **Greta** : What.

 **Beverly** : I think I’m not really right for the team? I’d like to drop ou-

 **Greta** : Oh thank god. Yes. Drop out.

 **Beverly**...Oh...Alright then. Is there anything I need to do to get my name off the registry or-

 **Greta** : Are you still dating Ben?

 **Beverly**...pardon?

 **Greta** : Are you still dating Ben. The ex-lard ass?

 **Beverly** : What the hell Greta? Don’t talk about him like tha-

 **Greta** : I’ll take that as a yes. As long as you’re still dating Ben, whether you do or don’t take part in the activities, you’re still on the team.

 **Beverly** : Greta that doesn’t make any sense

 **Greta** : It’s just the way things work here. I’m hanging up now.

 **Beverly** : Thats so fucking du-

**_CLICK_ **

**_Beep Beep Beep Beep....._ **

Whatever.

At the end of the day, Beverly was eligible to write it down as an extra curricular activity on her college application.

She still attended all of Ben and Mike’s games. Looking at the group of girls thumbing around in the front of the podium, Beverly felt relief that she had managed to get herself out of... **THAT**.

Ben and Mike had a final round up with the team that Sunday before they can finally part ways.

The experience for Mike and Ben had been pretty positive. Sure, the other members were completely made up of meat heads and ex-bullys, but the sport had lead to them focusing their rage and obnoxious attitudes more towards other players on the field, rather than their classmates.

Ben and Mike mostly stuck together. It got even better when Mike made it as the main quarterback and head of the team. Ben was also doing pretty well as a linebacker. It definitely made their lives a little easier.

_(Not like when they first joined the team, when most of the group had been resentful of having to be grouped with the former fat kid and the only black kid in their year.)_

_Turns out that didn’t matter anymore if **YoU tHrOw BaLl GoOd! Go TeAm!!!!**_

**_....._ **

Eddie had soured in track, solely carrying the title of “Fastest female runner” on her back for the past year.

Richie had reckoned that she was even faster than Marvin Caccia (Who had been sports captain of the Men’s team), but the school didn’t permit women racing against men. In fact, they weren’t even permitted to take part in competitions that represented the school. This left Eddie’s gift of running pretty unknown, which had pissed Richie off. Eddie could easily have been a sports captain.

Richie had often told her this while ranting in Eddie’s room.

She liked listening to Eddie grumble about this and that, then having Eddie listen to her whine back about small things that had grinded her gears that day. It was almost therapeutic.

While going on about what a drip MaRvIn CaCa was (A reoccurring topic) and how much better Eddie was at running, Edele always ended up giggling, telling told her to shut up as she always did, a small hidden smile on her face.

_Eddie loved how passionate Richie got when she talked about what a great runner she was. How mad she got on Eddie’s behalf when they got the news that the women’s team weren’t receiving any type of platform towards competitions in the foreseeable future._

_Eddie loved alot of things about Richie. Not that she’d ever tell her that. She didn’t want to make that head any bigger than it was already_

Nowadays, Eddie didn't have as much time to spend with the others.

Sensing that she was growing up and that it was almost time to let her sweet little _EdDiE bEaR_ go, Sonia had the girl under lock and key.

She had cut down the time Eddie could spend with her friends, labelling it as study time...which was bullshit as during these “study times” Sonia would constantly interrupt Eddie from whatever she was doing to do little chores around the house, run errands, gossip loudly, offering her diet tips from old magazines as she sat eating chocolate éclairs...

No, Eddie hardly ever managed to do any studying during these allocated StUdY tImEs.

Another factor that had cut into Eddie and Richie’s alone time was when Rich had joined the baseball team last year. All the losers had been surprised at this. Richie was never one for sports and no one had any idea why she did it...

_...until word spread around that she was seeing a girl on the team called Stel._

_Stella. Estella Poulin._

She was a tall girl in their year, though she and Eddie never had any classes together. Stel had curly blonde hair that reached just below her ears, Bright green eyes and a long, skinny body (Being almost as tall as Richie...which was rare as there were hardly any girls who were as tall as Richie. She’d be the tallest in their year if it weren’t for a boy in her class called Tobius, who had her beat only by 2 inches...)

The other losers thought Stella was cute....

**.....Eddie didn’t.**

When Richie had told the other losers that Stel had asked her out and she said yes, Eddie refused to talk to her for weeks.

No one knew why. Not even Richie. It hurt her. Eddie said that she supported Richie.

She told her she was proud of her...

_And yet here she was with her FIRST EVER girlfriend.....and the one person who mattered more than anyone...who Richie loved even more than her **OWN** **MOTHER**...was completely blanking her._

_(btw yeah ok it sounds bad. Getting a girlfriend when you know very well that you loved someone else. Richie was 18. An openly bisexual, skinny legend who was living in a backwards town. The person she loved most in the world was straight and other than her few friends and parents, everyone thought she was just this weird looking freak. A dirty fag who would jump you in the showers after P.E.)_

After coming out, while Richie did feel a little better around her friends and at home, things at school just got harder.

There had suddenly been so many complaints from other girls that they didn’t want to be around Richie in the changing rooms that their sports teacher had just shrugged and handed Richie the keys to the janitor’s closet. 

Greta had tried (and failed) to get Richie banned from using the girls bathroom, but apparently that was too far...but of course, it was perfectly acceptable to have Richie change in the janitors closet. No, that was fine it seems.

**God, Derry high fucking sucked.**

...So yeah. During this period of time, Richie was feeling pretty **unwanted**. And _**disgusting**_.

This changed a little when Stella had randomly come up to her one day while she was skipping English to have a smoke under the Stands on the field.

Richie had been suspicious at first, almost certain that the blonde was about to ask her an inappropriate question, or even beat the shit out of her.

Who knows.

She inhaled her cigarette smoke when Stel leaned against the podium and just casually said she thought Richie looked hot when she smoked. That she thought Richie’s broken glasses were “Retro” and wanted to know if she was free that weekend.

It felt like a joke.

After almost suffocating on her cigarette, Richie had almost laughed in response. She was preparing herself to shoot back “Woah, Stel gets off a good one!” with finger guns and everything.

She looked at the tall girl. She looked pretty serious.

“...Well?” She had asked, “You free on Saturday?

**...Well damn!**

They ended up dating for 2 months (with Eddie ignoring her for one part, and acting downright annoying the rest of the time)

Stel had been nice. She was eager to listen, always laughing at Richie’s jokes (even the reeeally not funny ones). She loved being active and almost never complained. And her best quality you might ask?

_She was absolutely nothing like Eddie._

Richie had felt like this was a good thing. Had hoped that by spending time with someone so... **NOT** _Eddie_...it might help her stop...idk...

_...Dreaming about her in the night?_

_Might help stop her from staring at her all the fucking time?_

Stella had introduced her to the baseball team, a kind group of girls from various year groups. Stel wasn’t exactly open yet as a Lesbian but within the Baseball club all secrets were kept between them. It turned out two other members identified as LGBT. Richie was welcomed to join with open arms.

_Don’t get it wrong, Richie loved being with the Losers more than anywhere on the planet...but this was what she really needed right now. She had just come out and was receiving nothing but backlash at school and had finally found a group of strangers who didn’t immediately spit on her for something as stupid as her sexual preferences._

Stel and Rich had gone slowly at first, kissing each over for the first time after their third week together. By the midpoint of their first month they had gone all the way.

Richie’s first time was weird. It felt awkward and embarrassing. The second time was a little better.

After that it was just...nice.

And that’s it.

_(Sometimes, when hearing Stel moan into her ear...she would imagine what Eddie would sound like...would imagine what Eddie would feel like...but those thought were shaken away by Richie, full of guilt for thinking about her straight best friend who she loved so much while with her girlfriend, whom she...liked.)_

...Out of the whole losers group, Rich had chosen to confide with Beverly.

Beverly was happy if Rich was happy.

.....

Was Richie happy?

No. Not really.

Sure Estella was a nice girl and she had made school a little bit more tolerable...but was it worth it if she couldn’t spend as much time with Eddie?

Eddie had finally stopped acting weird after a few weeks into Richie’s relationship. She was polite to Stel but she didn’t invite Richie over anymore. Richie felt like Eddie knew that they had taken the next step in their relationship.

She could feel it.

Whenever Stel slipped her fingers through Richie’s curls, the freckled girl would make this face that Richie just...couldn’t decipher, before quickly turning away.

It made Rich sad.

And Stel noticed how sad Richie got when the others left to go home at the end of the day, Eddie lingering a bit longer than the others. She’d always turn to the other two girls; say a curt “Bye then”, then left her alone.

_Well, not alone. Stel was always there waiting for Richie at the end of the day but the face she would make when Eddie left...she might as well be the loneliest person on the planet. While at first it was irritating, watching her girlfriend pine so openly for someone else...but over time it just became heart breaking to watch._

2 months had passed and while Stel _was_ enjoying the time she spent with Richie...it didn’t take a genius to see who was really in the other girl’s heart.

_(Plus Stel had lost count of the times she caught Richie staring at Eddie as they sat together during lunch. She had snapped her fingers a few times to alert her attention but it was like the bespectacled girl was in a trance. Knowing you were no.2 was never a nice feeling.)_

When she finally broke the news to Richie, it was a pretty clean break.

Rich had shrugged and asked if they could still be friends, which Stel replied with “Course we can, Rich!”

Rachel then paused

”...Does that mean I’m off the team?”

_Stel had almost whopped her skinny ass._

The losers had been sad to hear about the break up.

Hearing the news, Eddie immediately waltzed up to Richie with her hands on her hips.

“One fart joke too many I take it?”

Richie broke into a grin and motioned towards her ass.

“Care for a free demonstration, cutie?”

Before Eddie had time to protest, Richie turned and jumped up, farting right at her face. Eddie shrieked like a banshee, smacking Richie’s ass with the Cat woman comic she had just been reading.

The other losers had looked at each over.

**And that’s the end of that.**

/////////

Now the losers were spending their final last hours on school property eating lunch before their individual clubs good bye parties at the end of the day.

_Rachel had played a few games that morning with the other club members, Beverly chattered with Ben on the sidelines of the football field as Mike gave a half assed goodbye speech to the team (because even though they were on the same sports team...most of other members DID bully Mike and Ben for most of their time in high school before getting recruited...if Mike wasn’t such a nice person he would honestly have told them all to go fuck themselves and spent the rest of the day waiting in the canteen to go home with the other losers.) Ben didn’t care as long as Bev was around._

Bill had finished sooner than expected and was given permission to join in with Stan in the chess club (Bill knew a few of the other members so they were having a nice time, hanging out and laughing about all the fun things they were planning to get up too over the summer).

Eddie had done a few laps against other members of her club, her frustration towards what had gone down that morning fuelling her.

It had caught the attention of some of the male track runners who were having their meet-up on the other side of the field. As a show of good sportsmanship, the male runners offered to entwine their leaving parties together at the end of the day. They could start with a few races, boy vs. girl.

After lunch, Eddie was planning to finally have that race with Marvin.

Eddie was gonna wipe the **FLOOR** with Mr. CaCa.....she couldn’t wait.

Savagely biting into her brown bread cucumber and hummus sandwich, she saw Beverly enter the canteen along with Mike and Bill. Not far behind was....Ugh.

 **Richie**.

“Ben and Stan are eating lunch in the Chess clubroom”, Beverly smiled as she sat beside Eddie, Pulling out a donut she had bought from Subway on the way to Derry High that Morning.

Mike was back on his phone, probably telling his girlfriend how badly he wanted to see her right now...because he’s a love sick sappy sap.

Bill crunched on a packet of beef jerky he brought from home.

“Someone in the chess club brought their p..puppy with them”, He said, “Adrian said we can come over later to play with her if we w..wanted”.

Mike snorted as he texted.

“That explains why Ben was so desperate to get over there”.

While the other losers chattered together, Richie carefully looked up at Eddie.

To her surprise, the girl was looking back at her. Glaring.

Despite making direct eye contact, the girls didn’t look away from each over...the other losers pretended not to notice, chattering away in a lower tone.

“ _Eddie_ ”, Richie said.

Edele looked down for a second to pick up one of the carrot sticks her mum had packed her. She brought it to her lips and resumed looking at Richie as she crunched into it. Hard.

“ **What** ”, she replied.

Richie gulped.

_“I need to talk to you for a minute”._

She waited for a response. A moment passed and Eddie sighed.

Abruptly, she shoved the remainder of her lunch back into her bag and stood up. Richie looked up at her, along with the other losers.

“ **Well**!?” Eddie huffed, “ **Are we going to talk or..!?**

Richie sprang into action, pulling her long legs out from their stretched position from under the table. She waited first for Eddie to scuttle around and walk towards the canteen exit, before following after her like a puppy. The other losers looked at each over, before resuming their conversations.

**They’ll figure it out.**

Now alone in the hallway, Eddie leaned against the lockers, her arms folded against her (bigger than ever...not that Richie’s noticed...) chest.

She looked up at Richie, pouting with a sulky expression

“ **Go on then** ”, She ordered, “ **Spit it out shitlord!** ”

Richie looked her up and down, a dumb expression on her face.

_God. Eddie looked so cute...fuck..._

Eddie leaned over, snapping her fingers over Richie’s face.

**“RICHIE WHAT IS IT”** , She bellowed. Richie snapped back to attention.

“I uh...I’m”, Richie rubbed the back of her neck.

“I’m sorry I yelled at you earlier...and I didn’t mean what I said, that was ju-“

“What did you mean then”, Eddie asked.

Richie looked down at her. She felt herself starting to get sweaty.

Eddie walked in a bit closer to Richie.

_“What did you mean Rich?”_

Eddie was now straight up facing Richie; her brown eye’s looking deep into Richie’s as if they were desperately looking for something. Something Richie was trying to keep hidden.

**“...Eddie”.**

Both girls were quiet again. Richie had brought her arms up from her sides and gripped onto Eddie’s tiny shoulders.

The small girl dropped her annoyed expression, immediately softening at the contact from Richie. It was rare these days for Richie to initiate any skinship.

Sure she whined about it as kids, but once it suddenly stopped it hadn’t taken her long to miss it.

_To yearn for it._

“ _Richie_ ”, Eddie whispered back in a low voice.

Richie’s eyes grew dark at hearing her name fall out of Eddie’s red, glossy lips.

**RiiiiiiiIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGG**

**The bell suddenly rang, indicating that it was the end of lunch. Not exactly being a school day, some people in different groups were already leaving. Richie had one more game and then she was free to go. Eddie was technically finished, but she wanted to test her speeds against the men’s team.**

The two girls jumped away from each over.

Once again, Richie was back to her goofy self. She had jumped back too fast and her glasses fell hanging by the side of her face, the frame tangled in her hair. Her hands shot up in embarrassment, fixing it and shoving it back up her nose.

Eddie sighed, rolling her eyes.

Getting ready to walk back to her club, Richie shot out her big hand and grabbed Eddie’s hand, making the girl face her again.

She looked down at her hand, completely encased by Richie’s.

_It made her face flush._

“Eddie, can you wait for me after my game”, Richie said, her face full of determination.

**“I have something I want to tell you”**

Eddie’s eyes shot away from her hand to Richie’s face. She felt Goosebumps growing on her arms.

_“F...fine. Okay, I’ll wait.”_

Richie gave her a massive grin, the one that showed the gap between her front teeth...Eddie loved it when she smiled like that.

Richie Squeezed Eddie’s hand, before letting go and turning around, in a hurry to get her game over with.

“Wait for me at the front entrance!!” Richie called.

Eddie watched the girl sprint down the hall, into the gym.

“It’s happening”, Eddie thought to herself excitedly, “it’s finally **FUCKING** happening...”

\\\\\\\\\

Richie ran to the end of the hall. Once walking through the gym door and shutting it behind her, she pumped her fist, taking a clean breath of air.

“I’m gonna tell her...I’m finally gonna **FUCKING TELL HER!!”**

**////////**

Finally finishing the game, Richie wiped the sweat off her brow and put on the Hawaiian shirt she had tied around her waist.

She could see Eddie in the corner of her eye, giving her a cute wave as she sat there, waiting patiently for Richie to finish up and get ready to leave with her.

_“Stay calm stay calm your doing this it’s happening it’s going to be fine it’s all good Richie you fucking king you sex lord you-“_

“Hey Rich!” A voice called.

Broken from her mental mantra, Richie turned behind her and was greeted by Stella. She chugged on her water bottle, before resuming her smile at the tall girl.

“Good game Richie Rich”, the blonde grinned, patting Richie’s back. “Gonna miss you when you leave”.

At this she took another drink from her water bottle.

_Richie gave her a warm smile. Things hadn’t really worked out between them, but she was so grateful to have met at least one person (other than the losers) who wasn’t a complete asshole at this school. Richie put her arm around her shoulder, pulling her close._

“I’ll miss you too OlD bUdDy oLd FrIeNd Old PaL Of MiNe!” Stella giggled at Richie’s sports announcer voice.

She always loved it when Richie did one of her voices.

Eddie watched, not quite close enough to hear...but close enough to see Richie. Laughing loudly as she held her ex-girlfriend close to her, spinning her about...

_Eddie’s smile fell._

Estella leaned down and placed her water bottle onto the floor.

“Richie...” She said slowly, looking at the girl up and down. Richie cocked her head to the side.

“Whats up, Stelly?”

Stella smiled at the nickname Richie used. The same one she had called her back when they were dating a year ago. They hadn’t spoken much since then, other than during club time.

_Estella had missed her. She had thought about her sometimes. About all the fun they used to have._

“As this is probably the last time...”

Eddie crooned in closer from where she was sitting. Richie didn’t have her arm around Stella anymore...Stella was making a little “Lean down” motion with her fingers and Richie was leaning down a little, her eyebrows raised... their faces were awfully close to eachover...they looked close enough to-

Eddie watched with wide eyes as Stella leaned in and kissed Richie.

_Right on the lips._

Richie immediately shot up, wiping the back of her arms across her mouth.

**“Stella what the fuck are you doing?**!, She hissed.

Stella shrugged. “Rich come on let’s be honest, this is probably the last time were ever going to see each over.”

Richie shot her a dirty look, which made her fold her arms in anger.

“Fucksake Rich, it was one kiss! I’m sure your girlfriend wouldn’t care...it wasn’t even go-“

Richie shut her eyes, trying to calm herself down. “ **What the FUCK are you talking about**”, she hissed behind gritted teeth.

**“I don’t have a girlfriend”.**

Stella scoffed.

“You saying you STILL haven’t asked Eddie out?” She snorted to herself, “Aren’t you guys moving in together next year”.

**_“Eddie and I are...”_ **

Oh god. Oh fuck.

Eddie

Richie looked up at the stand.

Eddie was gone.

.....

Pushing past Estella (Who mumbled “Hey” as she was roughly shoved aside) Richie threw off her shoes and put back on her trainers, not bothering with her socks. Almost falling over her long legs, she dashed out the gym and ran down the stairs, past the canteen and into the main reception of the school.

Richie sprinted outside to the front gate, where they had put their bikes that morning.

Fuck. God Damn it. Eddie’s bike was gone.

_Richie never hated herself more than that moment. Everything was ruined._

Seeing as there was no longer any point, she made her way back to the gym to get her bat (and her socks) and ignored Estella, who was piling words of apology into her ears as she gathered the rest of her shit.

“See ya round”, she mumbled to her friends, before closing the door behind her.

The walk home was **unbearable**.

Beverly and Ben had left with Mike after lunch, promising to meet up all together again the next day to plan out what they wanted to do for the rest of their time in Derry.

Stan and Bill were probably still playing with that cat or hamster or whatever he had mentioned during lunch.

_That’s all well and good. Richie wasn’t really in the mood to talk with anyone at the moment._

About to make her way across the kissing bridge, Richie stopped herself.

She was now 100% certain that she would have a mental breakdown if she took ONE LOOK at that R+E carving she had made during the summer when she turned 13.

Groaning, Richie settled on taking the long way home, across the road outlining the quarry.

The wind was warm on her face...or were those tears? Richie couldn’t tell.

Feeling all poetic and shit, Richie roughly wiped her arm across her nose, popping a snot bubble.

_God she was gross. So fucking gross._

_Eddie hates gross things...yeah...this was probably for the best._

_Eddie deserved someone who didn’t wipe their snot bubbles with their arms, someone who didn’t NEED glasses to see...Eddie deserved someone who didn’t know how to burp the entire alphabe-_

_........._

Something caught Richie’s attention. Whatever it was, the light that was coming from it shined bright into Richie’s glasses, making her wince.

She took off her glasses, rubbing her eyes as she got closer...is that..?

Eddie’s bike?

.....

Richie was looking down on it now. It was.

It was the Bike Eddie had taken to class that morning. The cute pink one Richie had painted with Beverly and given to her for her 18th. With little daisies clumsily drawn on the crossbar, Stickers on the frame.

Completely abandoned on the side of the road. The wheel still turning.

Richie looked up from the bike. Further, near the edge of the grass leading down to the quarry were two other bikes.

_Richie’s blood ran cold._

One was red and rusty, the other painted black.

**Property of Patrick Hocksetter and Henry Bowers.**

The cold feeling in Richie’s chest faded within seconds, replaced with a burning hot fury.

Teeth gritted and fists clenched, Richie opened her backpack and pulled out a metal bat.

**She began to quietly make her way down the quarry...**

_**...........** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really excited for the next chapter.  
> Next up will be in Eddie's POV!!! stay tuned and thank you for reading!


	4. LETS GET READY TO RUMBLE!!!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I am SO SORRY, but here's another long one...its 4am here but i am beyond happy with how this chapter turned out...sorry for such a long piece but i really hope yall enjoy it.
> 
> (suuuper fun fact i found while researching surname origins..Richie’s surname (Tozier) means “To tease”...its..too perfect imma explode...

**CHAPTER 4**

Eddie walked along the dust road, savagely kicking at a rock as she walked her bike.

**STUPID RICHIE**

Eddie kicked it again, completely focused on her white shoes, now filthy as she dug them against the dirt.

**STUPID ESTELLA FUCKING POULIN**

Eddie didn’t get it. Why would anyone go out with someone whose last name meant chicken?! _Thats right, poulin was French for chicken_...Richie probably thought Stel was all elegant and French and so..so _distingué_ ....when all this time she’s been dating a girl whose name meant star chicken.

It would have been so funny if Eddie wasn’t so god damn jea _ **LOUS GOD DAMN IT!!!**_

Eddie knocked the rock hard with her foot and saw it travel past the dusty road, hitting against a wood post, leading towards the kissing bridge.

**....No**.

Not today. Eddie was 100% certain if she took one look at that FUCKING carving she would lose it.

That fucking carving...the thing that started all of this...this **BULLSHIT**.

**5 years ago...**

Eddie was certain that she was not meant to have witnessed it...on that rainy day years and years ago. Richie had looked so sad as she walked out of the arcade through the town square.

Eddie had been at the pharmacy waiting for a prescription when she saw her best friend walk down the alley next to the bookshop, a stormy expression on her face.

Eddie could see she had been crying.

She gave Mr.Keen a glance. He seemed to be involved with another customer. Greta was sitting behind him, whirring around on his spin chair and popping skittles into her mouth. Every few minutes she would shoot Eddie a glare, before resuming to eat as she span. Eddie turned back to the window. Richie had disappeared now, down the alleyway.

**Fuck it.**

Eddie stood up from where she had been seated and left the pharmacy, the bell at the door ringing as she stepped out without notice. It was a cold windy day and she had been forcibly wrapped up in a jumper, followed by a fleece around a cardigan and then topped with a big puffy coat, with a scarf, hat and thick mittens. From what she had seen of Richie, the other girl was just in jeans and a long sleeved shirt. She must have been freezing...

Without a second thought, Eddie pulled off her (unreasonably) large coat and began trekking towards the taller girl’s direction.

After walking out of town and past some detached houses leading into a cul-de-sac, then down towards the unpaved roads, Eddie finally caught sight of Richie.

There was something about the way the tall girl was moving that gave Eddie the impression that she was...scared? Richie didn’t have her usual slouch, nor the carefree bounce she always had when walking about with the losers.

Richie suddenly turned to where Eddie was standing and...Eddie couldn’t understand why but her instincts were urging her to conceal herself.

She immediately ducked behind a bush, her small body wracked with a curiosity and tension she had not felt before.

Looking relieved that she was (she assumed) alone, Richie pulled out a small metal looking thing from her back pocket and nervously stepped onto the bridge. Eddie stood up from where she had been crouching...the knees of the white tights she was wearing were covered in dust and bits of grass.

_(her mum was going to yell her ears off when she gets home..damn it..)_

As she stood there (still behind the bush), Eddie loomed a little closer, being able to make out Richie’s crouching figure from behind the panels of wood. The tall girl appeared to be carving something.

_Eddie’s heart began to beat._

Richie was carving something...onto the kissing bridge...the kissing bridge!?!

Does this mean...no. It couldn’t be.

This was probably one of her pranks. Yeah, she was probably writing something like, “Greta keeps gummy worms up her fanny”, or some crude drawing.....

...but. If this wasn’t a prank. Who could be the person Richie had a crush on? Eddie never saw her talking to any guys other than the losers...she never really joined in on the playground when all the girls talked together about what boy band member or actor they wanted to marry in the future...

No, the only person who Richie spent lunchtimes with, who she spoke to and hung out with the most was...was...!!

_Eddie’s heart began to do summersaults in her chest._

Finally, the tall girl stood up.

From behind, Eddie saw Richie wiping her hand across her nose (Which must have been running like crazy considering how cold it was..eddie continued to scold Richie in her head for not wearing appropriate autumn clothing).

Seemingly admiring her craftsmanship, Richie took one last look around her to make sure no one had witnessed what she had done, and then roughly shoved the chisel looking thingy back into her pocket. She breathed out one last time and then quickly made her way across the other end of the bridge, towards her house.

Eddie waited till she was alone, sitting on the floor behind the bush. Now the rear of her skirt was dirty too, but she couldn’t care less. Slowly standing, she quietly walked past the wooden stand towards the opening of the kissing bridge. She looked at where Richie had been slumped only a few minutes before, the wood peels sat in a little clump, marking the spot.

Eddie walked over, turned to the wooden panel...and just...looked.

**R+E**

_Eddie couldn’t breathe._

Her thick mittened hand automatically shot into her jacket, gripping at the fanny pack where she kept her inhaler...but she didn’t take it out.

She continued looking at the carving...Richie loved...were there any other boys in their year whose name started with an E? There was Eddie Corcoran..but Richie never spoke to him..Ethan?

No...Richie had hated him ever since she heard him laughing about what a “Goofy Dyke” she was while smoking behind the gym. (When Richie told her, Eddie had decidedly begun to hate him too...the asshole...)

As far as Eddie knew, she was the one who hung out with Richie the most, in and out of school. The closest to her out of anyone in the losers club. Whose name began with an E.

**But...this couldn’t mean...did...did Richie like her?**

Eddie didn’t know what to do with the thought. She felt... _scared_.

What was scaring Eddie wasn’t the fact that her mummy had said gays burn in hell...or getting nasty things drawn on her locker...or even getting called a fag by the other girls and boys at school and around town...

...what scared Eddie was the feeling in her stomach. She felt like there were hundreds of thousands of butterflies inside of her. She felt goosebumps on the back of her neck.

No...what scared Eddie was that instead of feeling disgust...or betrayed that her friend might secretly like her more than a normal friend should.......Eddie had felt relief.

Relief that the only conclusion was that it was _her_. Richie liked _her_. Only _her_.

Eddie caught her breath. Pulling back on the massive jacket she had been clutching close to her chest, the small girl ran all the way back home. She kept running till she finally reached the doorway of her house.

Entering, Eddie ignored the familiar sound of her mum’s voice coming from the living room, whining about why she had taken so long to get her medicine. She ran all the way upstairs to her bedroom and slammed her door shut _(something her mum will make her pay for in an hour or 3)._

Falling into her pink bed sheets, she wrapped her arms around herself, smiling softly against her pillow.

**_“Richie loves me”_ **

_You could say that was the turning point for Eddie in their friendship._

Eddie hadn’t been quite sure yet what she felt. There hadn’t been any boys in her class that had ever caught her attention...plus there were times while watching movies with the other losers that Richie would make some off handed comment about some male actors perky ass or rippling biceps which was...honestly pretty confusing...

_...Because wasn’t Richie gay?_

Sure, she knew that the tall girl hated it when other kids at school called her a dyke or a fag...but she had written R+E...right?

Eddie often looked at the carving, the kissing bridge now the regular route she took when going home after school. When walking home with Richie she saw her looking at it sometimes...she probably wasn’t conscious of the fact that her eyes would whip to Eddie every time they crossed the carving...

_....but Eddie noticed._

It made her stomach feel funny every time Richie would shoot her that little look, suddenly going silent as they stepped across the mounts of the bridge, just to continue talking once they reached the end as if nothing had happened.

Eddie was confused about alot of things. Now when she looked at Richie, she had these **muy** creepy urges to dig her hands through her dark curls.

Before when she burped or farted or did gross stuff Eddie would have shrieked and kicked her away...but now all Eddie wanted was for Richie to pay attention to her. Her heart would soar when Richie pulled her onto her lap at the Aladdin, or when she brought her favourite snacks and comics while they spent time at the quarry.

Eddie felt like a princess when Richie climbed through her window during the evenings, lying with her on her bed as they shyly chattered about their day or read comics together or ate or whatever...

Eddie loved...being around Richie.

And Richie had somewhat responded...or maybe that was all in Eddie’s mind...

Eddie made a point to hold hands more often, hugging the tall girl whenever she could, even going to the point of wrapping her arms around her neck while sitting on her lap. The red face Richie would make before letting lose a wobbly laugh regarding how bratty she was acting delighted Eddie.

Of course, she’d whip out a biting remark about how uncomfortable Richie’s knobbly knees felt below her ass, but Eddie felt like she was getting somewhere...both with Richie and with her own feelings.

A few years passed and this routine of theirs continued. Eddie couldn’t really say if the other losers ever got a hint of how she felt towards Richie, but none of them would deny that they had a closeness that no one could touch. They were Eddie and Richie. Richie and Eddie. The unbreakable duo...

_...Well, they WERE the unbreakable duo...till Sonia broke the news that she was spending the summer in Poland._

And **OH MY GOD** Eddie was shitting herself. That would mean she would have to take a **PLANE...WHICH WAS SUPER DANGEROUS BY THE WAY!!!NOT TO MENTION UNNATURAL!!! HUMANS AERNT MEANT TO FLY IM GONNA DIE IM GONNA DIE IM GONNA DI...”**

“Eddie...” Beverly cooed from the chair beside her, “Calm down sweetie, nothing’s going to happen to you. Come on, taking a deep breath...”

The day Eddie had broken the news to the other losers; they had all been hanging out at their clubhouse.

It was the first day of summer and they had all been excited to spend the next 3 months together, eating crap food and watching crap movies in their crap town together. That had all gone to shit at the entrance of Eddie, who after entering the clubhouse had immediately flung onto Richie, crying into her chest about how much she hated her mother for making her leave.

Ben sat on the floor, giving the crying girl a look of sympathy;

“Yeah Eddie It’s only 3 months, then we ca-“

“Ben that’s the entire summer”, Richie cut in hard. “That bitch is taking her away for the **E.N.T.I.R.E** summer...”

Ben settled back down next two Bill (Who had his focus split between the conversation and on his Nintendo) his eyes darting towards Beverly, who only shook her head slightly in response. Richie noticed Mike and Stan, who had their eyebrows raised at Richie’s choice of words.

Richie had worse words to call Sonia...but she got that Mike and Stan weren’t really comfortable with her swearing...she sighed, her arms around Eddie grew tighter as she turned to the two boys.

“C’mon...we’re going to miss her Birthday...her sweet 16th...”

Both boys took a pause, before nodding in agreement.

Because okay... **That sucked.**

_The losers always spent their birthday’s with each over...this Poland trip was about to break a tradition. Not good._

Hiccupping, Eddie looked up at Richie (The tall girl praying that she couldn’t feel her heart palpitate where her face rested against her chest...Eddie felt it).

“C..can’t I just stay in the clubhouse”, her voice whispered as a single tear slipped down her rosy cheek.

_Richie turned to mush at the sight of it._

“You’re staying with me and that’s that” Richie muttered, pulling the girl up and ripping the shower cap Stan had given her when she first arrived to the hideout off of her head.

Mike and Ben began to protest that it was a stupid Idea, Bill insisting that it would just get them both into trouble as Beverly giggled over the drama. Stan just shook his head, now sitting on the warm spot Richie had left on the ratty couch.

Giving their friends the bird, Richie marched Eddie all the way back to her house, both girls pumping full of determination and adrenaline. Once they made it past the front door and up the stairs, Richie made a big thing of shutting the windows and closing up the curtains so that both girls were alone together in the darkness.

“ _There aH you goH princessA_ ”, Richie bowed, her worst super Mario impression to date, “ _Bowser can’t find Ah you here Oh Yea_ H!”

_(Eddie rolled her eyes at the bowser comment towards her mum, making Richie snort.)_

Giddy to be alone together, both girls jumped on the bed. Richie began mapping out how she planned to delay Eddie from leaving the next day.

The scheme was very...bond-esque (one part involved blowing a poison dart through the window of Sonia’s ugly grey ford fiesta), but Eddie just sat there, nodding enthusiastically at every word coming out of the tall girl’s mouth, watching her agonize over the details so passionately. And all of this was so that she could keep Eddie near her.

Eddie truly believed she had never loved...and will never love anyone other than Richie Tozier.

Sadly, their scheming had been cut short with the entrance of Maggie, who had heard Richie rambling in that “Awful Italian impression...you need to work on that Hun”. Maggie stroked Eddie’s clipped, tidy hair with a concealed pity. She knew it would be hard for the two girls to be separated all summer.

She also felt a little worried for the freckled girl...It’s going to be scary going outside the country for the first time...Maggie wondered what was in store for Eddie..

**(Oh she had no IDEA)**

Grudgingly separating herself from Richie (and saying a polite goodbye to Maggie) she began making her way home. Eddie hardly ate when she got back; her mum was too focused in packing her clothes to even pretend to care if Eddie had already eaten.

“Go pack your things Edele”, She had barked upon entrance into the chemical scented hallway. Eddie sighed; taking out a candy bar her mum hadn’t thought Eddie had seen her hide in the drawer below the knives and forks in the kitchen, then walking dejectedly to her room to begin packing.

It broke her heart the next day, seeing all of her friends waving goodbye to her. Her mum had promised her at least 10 minutes to properly say bye to her friends. When the time finally came her mum just snorted, instantly locking the doors of the ford.

“Tight schedule Eddie-Bear”, she crinkled her nose, looking straight ahead through the windscreen.

Eddie turned her back to her mother, blob tears rolling down her warm cheeks as she manically waved out the window (her mother hissing in her ear to close it before she gets a cold).

She only closed the window when her friends were a long distance away, little dots reflected on the rear-view mirror.

//////

The flight from the Bangor airport to Warsaw took 9 hours. When the plane began to speed (bracing to be launched into the air) Eddie had instinctively grabbed the hand next to her, believing it to be her mothers. Once the plane was flying steadily in the air, she finally noticed that the hand she was holding felt thin and bony...not fleshy and warm like her mothers. She turned to an old woman beside her, full of deep wrinkles as her face folded into a smile.

“Masz piekne oczy!” The old woman crooned, looking deep into Eddie’s eyes.

Eddie couldn’t understand polish very well _(Her dad being the one of polish heritage, having never taught her anything about it as he died when she was young)_ , but she felt like the lady had said something nice.

Eddie blushed, stuttering out a “d..dobranoc”, making the old woman laugh loudly, squeezing her small hand in delight.

_(Later that night in her aunts flat, Eddie googled what she had said, her face lighting up in embarrassment that she had responded with “Good Evening”, rather than thank you.)_

Poland hadn’t been soooo bad. She was surprised to learn that her aunts weren’t so awful.

They were pretty great actually. They had all spoken English, which was a relief as Eddie seriously had no knowledge of Polish other than quick little phrases she had learnt on duolingo the night before.

They were quick to jump on her clothing though. To Sonia’s dismay, it turned out Europeans were very...blunt.

They had been in disbelief that Eddie would be 16 in a few weeks, not just for her tiny stature but because of her childish clothing they had thought she was 14.

The comment had made Eddie flush with embarrassment. Sensing how uncomfortable the girl was, one of her two aunts (A tall woman with pre Brown-greying hair and deep brown eyes called Janka) had simply patted her knee.

“We’ll go shopping this summer, okay?” She smiled.

Sonia looked as if she were about to say something...until Aunt Maja handed her a plate with cake on it. That shut her up.

A few weeks had passed now, Eddie’s birthday had come and gone (Late that night she had face timed her friends back in Maine, all of them promising to give her birthday gifts once she returned, Eddie had wished that the call could have lasted longer but the internet cut out)

Her mother had delayed the shopping trip promised by her aunts, but one morning while changing, Eddie began to get short of breath. With dog like hearing, Sonia had burst into the guest room she had been sleeping in, demanding to know where Eddie had been keeping her inhaler.

“ _D..didn’t.._ ” Eddie heaved, “ _T..take it....ugh..”_

Her two aunts entered the room, amused at the sight of Sonia, clucking like a wild chicken as Eddie continued to forcibly heave her shirt down.

Getting bored at the spectacle, Aunt Maja rolled her eyes and handed Janka car keys, before disappearing into the kitchen.

“Misiu...we need to get you some new clothes”, Janka turned to Sonia, who glared at the older woman, her hands gripped onto her waist.

“I’ll decide when my daughter needs new clothes thank you very mu-“

Sonia was silenced by the sight of Maja returning from the kitchen, a plate with Andrut and Starka.

“We’ll be back before you know it!” Janka called from the front door, pushing Eddie out before Sonia changed her mind as she followed the cake, beginning to gossip with an unresponsive Maja in the small kitchen.

Eddie had come home with brand new clothes...and she had looked at herself. She was different. Taller...but not by much.

She noticed that her hair had grown (Her mum had moaned at the sight of it, but was quickly silenced by Janka, who told her that her daughter ObViOuSlY inherited her fine hair from her mother’s side...and it would be a travesty to cut it. Flattery had won and Eddie was free to grow out her thick, dark curls.)

Her chest had grown the most...it made her a little bit uncomfortable to shop for bra’s with her Aunt, but she knew it was about time. According to Janka, while Eddie’s hair and skin tone were most likely inherited from her mother, her figure was identical to Janka’s when she was her age.

“ _Be thankful Misiu_ ” Janka winked, “ _You’ve been blessed_ ”.

So that was Eddie’s summer.

She tried to message her friends as much as possible but the internet on the apartment blocks weren’t the greatest. The only other option was to sit at Mcdonalds and use their wifi, but it was a distance away and she didn’t dare ask Sonia for a ride there...

The town they were in didn’t really have a shopping centre, so the only place Eddie could think of was the beach. Mielno had lots of tourism during summer so the beach wifi was free to use. Eddie actually spent alot of time there that summer...alone on the shore, flicking through her phone.

**That’s when she met Elena.**

Elena had introduced herself to Eddie 4 weeks before she was due to leave back to America.

Eddie had been lying on the beach, deciding to take a nap after reading Pet Cemetery for the second time. She was just starting to doze off when a shadow was cast before her, blocking out the warm ray of the sun. Opening her eyes, she was met with the grinning face of a girl with multiple piercing, a brunette pixie cut and big blue eyes.

Eddie felt herself blush under her gaze, automatically reaching for her shirt, holding in against her chest.

“Czy mówisz po angielsku?” The girl asked, cocking her head to the side, her grin unwavering.

Eddie nodded her head, recognising the word “Angielski” as English. Happy with the reply, the girl plopped next to Eddie, shifting her black gothy attire so that she could be closer to the freckled girl.

“Are you British?” The girl asked. She was closer now and Eddie could see little flecks of gold around her iris. Eddie paused, before shaking her head.

“American”, She answered back shyly.

The girl jumped back in excitement. “An American! Woah that’s so cool, most of the tourists who come here are French or British, I’ve never met an American one before!”

Eddie smiled at her reaction, the way she was looking at Eddie reminded her of someone...

Eddie knew that the girl was probably just trying to be friends, it would be nice to make a Polish friend before going home...but there was something else there. Eddie couldn’t put a name on it.

The girl continued to look Eddie up and down. Without warning, she reached out and swirled one of Eddie’s curls between her black polished nails. Eddie held her breath.

_“I don’t want to freak you out or anything...but I just thought you were really pretty and I wanted to talk with you and get to know you..?”_

****

**_...Eddie suddenly knew what the feeling was called._ **

****

The last few weeks of Eddie’s summer was one of self discovery.

While being suspicious at first over the amount of times Eddie had gone to the beach, Sonia had been satisfied that Eddie was using this time to get a head start on school work for September, using the beach wifi to see what was coming up next in the curriculum.

The girl had introduced herself as Elena. Elena was 18 and currently getting ready to start a fashion design course in London.

“ _I wanted to go to Paris, but it was too expensive_ ”, She had told Eddie, “ _Plus I have family in London to stay with_ ”.

Elena had taught Eddie many things during her last few weeks in the country. When Eddie had confided in her how she felt towards her best friend, Elena had been supportive (“albeit a little jealous” she had admitted.) When Eddie told her of her confusion of Richie’s apparent interest in men as well as women, Elena had told her the word for that was “Bisexual”.

_“There are many names for different sexualities_ ”, she had told the curious girl.

Eddie looked at her, her voice suddenly taking a more quiet tone.

“...So are women who only like other women called fa-“

“ _Lesbians_ ”, Elena interrupted (not unkindly). “ _I think they prefer to be called Lesbians_ ”.

She stopped, looking down at Eddie’s lips, before shooting her gaze back to Eddie’s brown eyes.

“ _At least...I prefer the term Lesbian”._

Eddie shifted awkwardly. So Richie was...probably bisexual. Ok. So it was possible to like more than one gender...it didn’t have to be one or the other...Alright. So maybe she hadn’t been crazy about the carving Richie had made when they were 13...phew.

**....But What about Eddie?**

Eddie looked at Elena.

She knew that her feelings for Elena weren’t even a fraction of what she felt for Richie...but she did think Elena was pretty. And cool. And kind of sexy...

_And that was more than she’s ever felt towards anyone of the opposite sex. Now that she was thinking about it...REALLY thinking about it...she’s never seen the appeal in being with a man before. She saw beauty in some men, sure. She had agreed with her friends in class that some actors were cute, others were cool, smart, funny...but sexually? No. Never. Eddie wasn’t interested._

Eddie looked up at Elena. Elena looked back.

“I think”, Eddie said, “I think I’m a lesbian”.

Elena grinned back.

**“Lucky Richie”**

**/////**

The last few weeks were heavenly. Eddie had really grown over the summer, gaining attention from her aunts who insisted on getting Eddie a proper hair cut at the salon, maybe layering her hair a little, accentuating the bounciness of her locks. Sonia had tested her on bits and bobs of school work, but thankfully with the help of Elena, Eddie’s polish skills had become a little more polished. She had even gotten over her initial embarrassment over how much her body had changed over the summer, now turning heads when she walked down the street.

Eddie felt good. She was so excited to meet her friends again.

But the person she was most excited to see was Richie.

Finally the last day came. Eddie had quickly stuffed all her new clothes into her suitcase (She had discarded all of the clothes she had brought with her, Sonia had been unhappy but she had to admit, there was no point in taking them back if they no longer fitted...like...at ALL.)

Kissing her Aunts goodbye (and promising to stay in contact online), Eddie made a quick excuse to Sonia that she had left one of her text books in one of the seaside cafe’s. Sonia grunted out permission and Eddie sprinted to the beach. Eddie had always been an incredible runner and Elena had encouraged her to join the track team once school restarts in September, which was just another thing to add onto the list of things Eddie was excited about.

Elena stood out on the shore, wearing another variation of her gothic outfits.

_(Eddie thought it was so cool how confident she was...it reminded her when Beverly had accidentally burnt of a large section of Richie’s hair while practising using the straightners...Richie had just shrugged and went to school like that the next day, grinning in her usual way despite the nasty comments other kids threw at her.)_

Face to face with Elena, the girl gave Eddie a photo they had taken together (Now in a cute little frame, adorned with Papaver Rhodeas and the Polish flag). The girls said their goodbyes, hugged...then had one last look at each over.

_Eddie and Elena leaned in together and kissed._

It was one kiss, but it was a deep one. Elena had a strong hold around Eddie’s waist as Eddie closed her eyes, her arms wrapped around her upper back. From behind they looked like two girls, wrapped tight in an innocent hug.

Breaking apart, Eddie smiled at Elena.

_“Good luck in University”._

Elena grinned back sheepishly.

_“You’re welcome to come visit me any time you want”_

With one last smile, Eddie turned her back and began to walk up the steps towards the apartment blocks.

**“...AND EDDIE?”**

Eddie turned to Elena, one last time.

**“GOOD LUCK WITH RACHEL!”**

_Turning red at the mention of her name, Eddie waved one last time and then finally disappeared up the steps to her complex._

///

The flight back wasn’t scary at all. Eddie knew now that although plane crashes DID HAPPEN...they didn’t happen as often as her mother had said...As the plane braced for landing she held onto the arm rest (after making sure there wasn’t a hand already there this time...)

**/////**

Back in Maine, Eddie hadn’t been allowed to reunite with her friends as soon as she had wanted.

While walking with her Mum the day after arriving back at the supermarket, Sonia had noticed a group of boy’s looking at her daughter.

At the time, Eddie was more engrossed with reading the ingredients on the back of a can of spam, her nose wrinkled with disgust.

Sonia looked at where the boy’s were pointing. Yes, Sonia could see it now. Eddie had grown over the summer...almost too much.

Pursing her lips into a tight line, Sonia pulled the spam out of Eddie’s hand and placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Sweety...” She simpered, “Mommy thinks you might need to go on a diet...”

_Eddie went red. She hadn’t realized that she gained weight...she definitely hasn’t been eating anything she shouldn’t. She looked back at her mother in confusion, but was only met with Sonia’s face, now growing stern. She waddled over to the side of the trolly and pulled out a packet of Twinkies._

**“...This?"** She motioned to the packet;

**“Not.for.you.”**

She placed the packet back into the trolley and began to toddle down the isle.

“You can start exercising by pushing the trolly”, she called out behind her, completely oblivious to the humiliation she had caused her only child.

_**So yeah, it was her first official day back and things were already starting to go shit.** _

Sonia had returned home one afternoon with Weighing scales, as well as diet packs and loads of health magazines that were SO OBVIOUSLY stolen from the waiting room at the local gp.

_What made her snap was the tape measures._

Eddie had been reading in her room when her mum suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

“Edele I wish you...”, She huffed from the trek upstairs, “I wish you would be more reasonable and sleep downstairs...you know how difficult it is for me to cli-“

“What is it mother”, Eddie asked. Sonia narrowed her eyes at her tone.

“Take off your clothes and come to the bathroom”, she ordered, “I’m going to start keeping track of your weight gains and then we’ll tr-EDDIE!?!”

Eddie pushed past her mother, skipping two steps a time as she made her way downstairs.

That was enough. That was it. Eddie needed a break. She needed to see her friends.

Ignoring her mother screeching after her, Eddie waltzed out of her house and made her way to Richies place.

**_And from that point things got even shittier._ **

_Richie changed. Eddie didn’t know why._

_Did she do something wrong? Did she not like her anymore? What the fuck happened?_

What was even worse was that the other losers hadn’t changed at all.

Yeah ok, there was a consciousness that hadn’t been there before when they swam in the quarry...but you could apply that to school as well. Eddie wasn’t a little girl anymore, she was a growing woman. She had even been shocked to find that boy’s at school were suddenly acting nicer to her...opening doors and offering to help with homework and stuff.

_Eddie knew none of that was genuine though...she could tell from every bitter, angry comment that was thrown at her the second after she rejected their KiNd oFfErS._

It was worse with Patrick and Henry. Belch hadn’t been around their gang in a while and Vic seemed to be spending most of his time with his girlfriend. When he was alone he hardly ever bothered anyone, strangely enough.

Patrick and Henry though...oh they were creepy as fuck now.

Ever since Eddie had returned, the air around the two boys turned a new shade of sinister.

Henry had made it a habit to stand outside her house a few days every month. Just resting against a tree, his gaze never leaving from Eddie’s window.

_(On days like that, Eddie felt no other choice then to feign sickness, much to her mother’s morbid delight. She loved nothing more than to fuss over her Widdol Babey Dolly.)_

Richie though...Rich was no longer Eddie’s big bean pole.

Her constant need to be hugged and pulled and held just vanished...Any time Eddie tried to initiate anything, even something as small as hand holding, Richie would alwawardly hold it for a moment, before shaking it off, stuffing her hand back into the pockets of her jeans.

Eddie noticed that whenever she did this, she would turn her face away, even moving away entirely at times.

It hurt her. It confused her. So much.

_Didn’t Richie like her anymore?_

...But that couldn’t be **possible**!

On the (now rare) occasion that Richie would sneak into her room, she saw the way the taller girl looked at her lips, before turning her face away, a slight redness seeping across her ears...Hell, Eddie had once just randomly decided to strip of her t-shirt, under the pretence of changing into her nighty.

It was mortifyingly embarrassing, but so worth it when Richie looked at her, her mouth hanging open like that wolf from the Tex Avery cartoons, before she would make up some crappy lie about how she was needed at home or whatever...

**Yes Eddie recognised that look.**

It was the same look that men would sometimes give her when she walked down the street in town, the same look that jerk Marvin Caccia gave her when her coach yelled at her in front of both the Women’s and Men’s track team for her uniform “MyStErIoUSlY sHrInKiNg”, the attire now being unacceptably tight on her figure.

On others, that look was uncomfortable...But on Richie?

_It made those butterflies in her stomach fly about like crazy..._

**_....so you could imagine the utter shock...the utter humiliation Eddie felt one year later...When she found out Rachel was now dating a girl named...star chi-Estella Poulin._ **

When she heard the news from Beverly...she wanted to tear her fucking hair out.

_She had been wrong. All these years...all this time._

_The E on the kissing bridge...it didn’t stand for Edele...Richie didn’t love Eddie Kaspbrak._

**Richie loved Estella Poulin.**

Eddie had felt like a complete narcissist.

Of course Richie didn’t like Eddie...She probably saw her as..as a little sister this whole time. All those times Richie had looked at her...the looks she had misinterpreted as want. As love.

She had just been marvelling over the fact that little baby Eds grew boobies over the summer. Thats it.

**God FUCKING DAMN IT.**

Eddie couldn’t bare looking at Richie after finding out.

She stopped bothering to hold the taller girl’s hand. Stopped trying to sit on the girls lap during movies...hell, she stopped sitting next to her altogether at the movies.

She could feel that Richie was bothered by this sudden change in her behaviour, but frankly, Eddie did not give a **shit**.

_She knew it was petty...that she was acting no different from the boy’s who would hiss insults at her the second she spurned any advancement they made...but Eddie just...couldn’t handle it._

_Estella was always around now, raking her (weird) long fingers through Richie’s hair...the way she had always wanted to do herself. It made her want to go feral._

The other losers were understanding, though a little confused when Eddie had begun to invite them over individually, none of these invites extending Richie’s direction...because even with or without Richie, living in a town like Derry with a mother like Sonia...Eddie still needed her friends.

One afternoon (and a few weeks into Stel and Richie’s relationship), while sitting in the park in the centre of town with the others, Eddie felt a presence behind her.

She rolled her eyes, not having to bother looking, knowing from the tall silhouetted shadows that it was Stella and Richie. As they joined in the conversation with the other losers, Eddie looked at the way Stella was draped around the taller girl, how affectionate Richie was as she rubbed circles onto back of the blonde’s neck. Eddie felt sick too her stomach.

**You didn’t have to be a genius to know that they had started fucking.**

Abruptly standing, the other losers watched as Eddie silently bent down to collect her backpack and books, then walking away without a word. Bill had tried calling after her, but was shushed by Stan.

_Turns out not all the losers were oblivious to what was going on._

Richie had just watched her leave. A look of confusion, followed by pain etched onto her face. She didn’t even manage to stay there longer than 10 minutes, before making up some lame excuse that she had cramps, then making her way home.

She left Stel there, who, whilst liked by the other losers, wasn’t THAT close to them. The rest of the group disbanded pretty quickly.

Eddie was so fucking mad. For fuck sake...a year had already passed and she was bitterly regretting not fucking... **boning** Elena back at that beach in Mielno...She wished she had known back then that there was no hope for her and Richie... **GOD SHE FELT LIKE SUCH A FUCKING IDIOT!!!!!**

After two rotten months, 60 days of feeling like a complete piece of shit, Richie entered the Loser’s hideout...something she hadn’t done in weeks. Honestly, it was a surprise to see her there, Mike almost fell out the hammock at the site of her.

 **“LADIES AND LOSERS** ”, she sang in a grotesque british accent,

“ **PLEASE BOW FOR THE NEWLY TURNED BACHELORETTE**...drumroll please (Beverly began drumming against the back of bill’s head...his parents had made him get a buzzcut over the semester...dont ask)“ **RACHEL TOZIER!!”**

The rest of the losers looked at the tall girl in shock. Eddie felt like her eyes would pop out if they opened any wider...

“Aw, sorry Bud”, Mike called from the hammock, resuming to play on Bill’s Nintendo, “Things not work out with Stel?”

Richie snorted as she made her way from the hideout’s entrance onto the tattered couch _(filthier than ever...remind Eddie to bitch and complain about it later...)_

“oBvIoUsLy Not , Mycicle”, Rich snorted.

She gave Eddie the swiftest of looks after that retort, immediately redacting after catching sight of Eddie, glaring back.

There was a silence in the hangout...till Eddie dropped her magazine and walked right up to Richie, with what she hoped to be a evil expression on her face

_(In Richie’s vision, she looked cuter than ever, her little pink tinged nose scrunched up as she furrowed her eyebrows)_

“One fart joke too many I take it?” Eddie sneered in what she hopped to be a disgusted voice.

Richie was overjoyed. This was probably the longest sentence Eddie had uttered towards her in weeks.

Not really thinking, Richie immedietly Motioned towards her ass, offered her a free demonstration, then hauled into a jump-fart POINT BLANK at Eddie’s face.

The other losers shared a look of solidarity as the two ran around the hideout, it was almost like everything was back to normal.

 _Almost_.

**\\\\\\\\\\\**

Another year had passed. Eddie was now 18 years old. She was at good place now. Sure, she and Richie had never regained that closeness from before that summer two years ago..but they were ok.

They were still good old Eddie and Richie.

The unbreakable duo.

Eddie wasn’t sure if Rich was seeing other people now, if she was still seeing Stel now and again...I mean, they still played baseball together everyweek...not that Eddie would give a fuck if they DID still talk to eachover...

Eddie was still in the closet about being a lesbian...but that was going to change once she got to University.

No, Eddie was going to...she was...she was gonna be _DROWNING_ in pussy.

Heh. That’s right...

Her mum still continued all that weight bullshit...thankfully over the past 2 years ,as well as getting dumber, Sonia had gradually gotten larger. So large that it was rare that she ever left the house.

Eddie deduced that all this stress eating had been because she knew that Eddie would leave soon...but once again _goOOOD RIDDANCE!!_

_After catching her mother one morning, seconds away from ripping apart her Acceptance letter to university, Eddie had lost the last ounce of respect she had towards her. Nowadays, Sonia’s shrieks and screams were met with a door smacking on her face (not literally...despite how badly Eddie wanted to...)_

Now completely and utterly certain that Richie felt nothing towards her, Eddie felt like it was time to let go.

She had already tried ignoring the other girl a year before. Completely cutting Richie out of her life had been painful, and it admittedly didn’t help. She still thought about her black mass of curls..how goofy she looked when she smiled, her metal braces glinting against the light...

No. Cutting Richie out was not an option. Richie was her best friend.

_She had felt a second round of betrayal when Richie rejected her offer to room together at University._

Eddie didn’t get it. Why not!? Eddie was single...Richie was single (as far as she fucking knew)...What could POSSIBLY be the reason that they couldn’t move in together.

Richie refused to even give her an answer, furthering her fury.

This earned another 2 weeks of silence between the girls. The losers just watched on from the sidelines, too engrossed in their own private drama’s to constantly stick their heads into the continuous saga that was _Richie and Eddie._

\\\\\\\\\\\

Eddie had resigned herself that Sunday that she would HAVE to see Richie again. She had no choice, considering it was the last ever day of high school.

All the losers will be there anyway.

 **Ugh**.

Absently pulling on a new lacy bra and underwear ( _that she ACTUALLY bought for university..but whatever_ )Eddie put on a short sleeved black shirt and a red pair of running shorts.

Making her way down the stairs of the quiet house (“hmm mum must be sleeping still”), Eddie put on a clean pair of white shoes, then slowly opened the door and...

.....

_Eddie could see the back of Henry bower’s Mohawk. He had his back turned away from Eddie’s direction, but Eddie knew in her heart if the boy saw her leave the house there’d be no escape._

Slowly backing away, Eddie called the first contact that popped up on her phone.

_Stanley Uris._

Thankfully, the boy told her he was making his way immedietly. He also passed the message along to Bill, who lived only a few houses away from his own.

They’d come walk her to school together...thank god thank god...

Eddie watched from her front window. She saw the two boys pass bowers...the boy appeared to have said something to them, making Stan look down at the ground.

Bill just shot him a filthy look as bowers watched them walk up to Eddie’s porch, knocking on her door.

_All though Eddie was shielded between the two boys who walked on her left and right, she could hear the sound of another bike trailing behind them. Stan and Bill edged in protectively, making the boy behind them let out a nasty snorting noise._

Once they finally reached the main road that lead towards the school, Eddie dared herself to look behind her.

Henry was gone. Phew.

**And thus, that is how that shitty Sunday had begun.**

Right after the morning from hell, Richie had informed her that she simply “Needed to get away from her”, Had her feeling played with **ONCE AGAIN** by Richie, who had promised to tell her something important after class..

_...and it had felt different._

_The way Richie had looked at her, the way her eye’s grew dark when Eddie said her name...Eddie knew that it was going to be different this time. Richie was going to tell her the real reason why she was so against them being roomies that upcoming September..._

(Eddie didn’t even want to **BEGIN** revelling over how **_pathetic_ **she was...)

Next, after beating Martin CACA at a race in front of his whole team, the boy had whined to the coach that her “Bouncing titties” had distracted him...causing the coach to take Eddie’s victory, handing it to the mens team...which....what kind of fucking sense did that make. Seriously, fuck Derry High.

**And then?**

After sprinting out of the track field towards the gym to watch Richie Tozier finish her last game...so that they could finally talk. So that Richie could finally tell her...whatever the fuck she had wanted to tell her...

_.... Estella fucking Poulin happened._

And now here Eddie was. Trekking through the dust.

Her shoes? **Filthy**. Her Bike? **Filthy**. Her thoughts? **FUCKING WRATCHED.**

Turning her nose away from the kissing bridge, Eddie hoisted her bike the other way, beginning her walk back home through the unmarked roadway at the top of the barrens.

_Silently swearing to herself, she hardly noticed Henry Bowers._

Henry had been waiting there all day.

He had almost been certain that Eddie would have walked home with her loser friends so he had enlisted the help of his last loyal gang member, Patrick, to stand about as extra muscle.

He was pleased to see that this was no longer needed.

As Patrick waited down the barrens, Henry quietly creeped behind the small girl. He stepped lightly, hardly breathing as Eddie continued to mutter curse words under her breath.

Suddenly, Henry wrapped both arms around Eddie, making her gasp in shock.

Before she even got a change to scream, Henry clamped her mouth shut. Eddie was small so there was no issues with hoisting her up from the front, one hand still gripping round her body painfully hard as the other closed around her mouth, the hand so big that it almost blocked up the air Eddie was trying to force through her nostrils.

Eddie’s bike fell down as Henry began to pull her through the muddy trail, deep into the barrens. Patrick watched from a tree stump, lazily flicking a pocket knife over his fingers. Next to him was a long sheet, purposely put there so that no one passing the road up top could see anything going on from below.

Finally at the marked spot, Henry slowly forced Eddie to lie on her stomach, his hand still clamped tightly around her mouth.

Now on the ground, Eddie felt his bitter breath on the side of her neck.

“ _Scream..._ ” He hissed, _“...And I’ll let Patrick fucking gut you_ ”.

Henry removed his hand and Eddie didn’t make a peep.

Henry smirked at the show of submission, now tying Eddie’s arms and legs together with ease.

Once he was satisfied with his work, he turned Eddie onto her back and picked her up, walking behind the sheet and laying her onto a dirty looking rag on the ground.

Eddie gasped out a sob, bringing Henry’s attention back to her.

“W...what are you going to do t...to me”, Eddie whispered, her brown eyes filling with tears as she looked up at Henry.

Henry cooed back mockingly, making a show of stroking her hair, wrapping a long strand around his hand.

“ _...I’m going to do something I’ve wanted to do for a long time_ ”, He snickered.

Motioning towards Patrick, whose eye’s glinted at the order of attention, Eddie watched with horror as he directed his knife towards her.

Closing her eyes shut, she bit into her mouth, trying to hold back a scream as she felt the sharp metal rip into her clothes, breaking her shorts apart.

Patrick was laughing the whole time, seemingly finding it funny how Eddie had squirmed below him. He was just about to cut off her underwear when she heard Henry ordering him to stop.

Eddie opened her eyes, which were met with the sight of Henry grinning broadly.

“...AND WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE”, he said excitedly.

Using his hands to rip apart the rest of the material, Eddie was now lying there, only in her t-shirt and lacy panties.

She desperately tried to turn her body away, shielding as much of herself as she could, but Bowers wasn’t having it.

Bored at not getting to continue, Patrick was back to guarding the hideout as Henry grabbed the front of Eddie’s shirt, wripping the material clean apart.

_Eddie was now only in her underwear, completely exposed underneath a euphoric Henry._

The boy looked down at Eddie as if she were a 5 star buffet, his eyes darting from her thighs that were tightly locked together, to her soft skin of her stomach, right up to her heaving breasts, and the expression on her face looking as if she were close to passing out.

**But no. Henry didn’t want her to pass out. He wanted her to remember this. Wanted her to see what he was about to do to her.**

_Henry called out to Patrick again... Maybe if he had the dagger, that would keep Eddie from fainting...yeah, that should do it._

_He’ll hold it between his teeth, that way he’ll be able to use both hands to slip his jeans off AND get to see the expression on her face as he does it._

Henry waited for Patrick to come stomping over. His heart was thumping so loudly in his ears he could hardly hear Eddie, who had begun to regain her sobriety. She was chocking out deep sobs, the type that sounded as if it hurt to breath.

After calling Patrick a third time, Henry gave up. The fuck probably ran after another cat or something...whatever.

_Back to looking over Eddie, Henry finally decided what he wanted to do first._

Reaching out, he began to knead at Eddie’s breasts, making the girl breath in a sharp intake of air in panic.

**“N...NO”** she cried, “ **FUCKING GET OF ME BOWERS!!”**

She began to move around furiously, seemingly forgetting the threats Henry had made just a few moments before.

Henry removed one hand from Eddie’s breast, placing it delicately around her neck. This made her stop writhing almost instantly.

“ _Did I not fucking tell you what would happen if you screamed?_ ” He asked.

Eddie’s glared up at him hatefully. The look sent a pleasant shudder up Henry’s neck.

Without another word, his hand was back on Eddie’s breast, rubbing his hand harder against the thin material of her bra.

To Eddie’s disgust, the Boy had began to lick the side of her neck, slobbering all over her as she tried not to make any more sounds.

_Eddie tried to think about anything else. Something that would distract her from what was happening...she thought of all of her friends...how excited they were for summer...all the fun things they had planned before they finally left Derry forever...Eddie though of Bill and Stan, how smart they both were. How kind and loving Ben and Mike had always been, even when they were really small. She thought about Beverly, how badly she wished she was her sister..._

_Eddie thought about Richie._

_How badly she wanted her to be with her. How much she wanted her to be by her side. The girl with the tangly hair,the girl with the thick rimmed glasses that were broken but she didn’t care, the girl who liked to give Eddie big goofy smiles with her shiny braces...her Richie. Eddie’s Richie._

“Richie”, Eddie whispered to herself, tears streaming down her face.

Henry stopped when he heard the name.

He began to laugh, almost manically with his head turned towards the air.

**“Richie?!** ” He questioned,“ **As in Richie _THE DYKE_ Tozier...are you fucking serious**??

......

**“...PATRICK ARE YOU GETTING THIS** ” Henry called from behind him, not bothering to turn away from the repulsed look Eddie was giving him, “ **LOOKS LIKE TOZIER** **ISNT THE ONLY FAG IN DERRY!!”**

Not caring about Patrick’s lack of response, Henry suddenly grunted as he pulled his hands off Eddie’s chest and attempted to turn her over.

_“How about I do something to you that she can’t?”_ He murmured into Eddie’s ear, making the girl completely break out from her thoughts of Richie and her friends...

"...What are you.... **NO PLEASE HENRY STOP PLEASE PL-** “

Henry had hoisted Eddie between his legs, one hand holding both of the arms he had tied behind her back, now using his free hand to cut off the back of Eddie’s Panties.

“ **FUCKING SHUT UP** ”, Henry roared, clenching the girls wrists together hard.

Eddie let out a whimper.

Eddie turned behind her one last time, one last look at Henry.

To let him see through her eyes how much she despised him. How much she detested the sight of him.

Eddie looked at Henry.

There was someone Behind him.

Eddie couldn’t make out the figure, a beam of light directed straight into her eyes, shifting a little, she could see that whoever it was...they were covered in blood...had wild hair, thick glasses, braces and...

**“Richie...?”**

**RICHIE PULLED OUT HER METAL BAT AND SWUNG IT AT HENRY’S HEAD.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! some translation stuff here!
> 
> Masz piekne oczy! = You have beautiful Eyes!  
> Misiu = Teddy Bear  
> Czy mówisz po angielsku? = Do you speak english?
> 
> I am polish myself and i've heard the stereotype that we can be cold...which i can say is 100% true lol. When i moved to england there are times where i would say something that in my head was just a fact..then be told that I've said something awful. I think its probably culutre gap. We have thicker skin.  
> But yes i have self projected a little bit mfknkckdcdcfjcf hope you enjoyed!!
> 
> IM REALLY EXCITED TO WRITE THE NEXT CHAPTER, THE BIG FIGHT!!!!
> 
> please let me know if you like this one though! You can now see how Eddie has been feeling throughout the years eeeeeeEEEEK! tysm for reading! xxx


	5. Ready Richie?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> !!!another long one...as its what u kings and queens and jesters deserve...
> 
> Sorry I took a while to add the next chapter...i htg finished it a few days ago and i was like..."NO NOT GOOD ENOUGH" and ended up deleting it and re writing the whole thing lmaoooo  
> Anywayyy hope you like what's about to come up next and tysm for reading xx
> 
> (omg also please read notes at the end and comment which one you would choose!!! Im hella inspired)

**Chapter 5**

Making her way down the wet, dirty mounds of the barrens, Richie gripped onto her bat, her hands holding it so tight it was shaking.

The further she went, the more she could make out sounds of someone grunting loudly, another voice was whimpering.

_It made Richie want to tear her fucking ears out._

Richie would have done anything to get the sounds out of her head...but she knew the further she went, the closer she was getting to Eddie.

**...And to Henry and Patrick.**

She had no idea what those fuckers were doing (oh god...or what they’ve already done)...all she knew was that she was going to fucking tear their spines out.

_She was going to make them unrecognisable. They were going to have to be identified by their fingerprints after Richie was done with them..._

Steadily making her way through dozens of trees, growing thicker as she ventured deeper down the Barrens, Richie could make out some kind of fabric flapping in the summer breeze.

It was a wide, filthy piece of material that appeared to have been tied between two branches, clearly intended to cover up something from anyone who might be walking along the road up the hill. 

If Richie had seen the sheet while walking across the road without Eddie’s bike lying on the grass, she probably would have assumed it belonged to squatters or campers or whatever...

But Richie had seen the bikes.

_Thank god. Thank god she didn’t take the short cut home._

Richie was getting close now, the sounds getting clearer and clearer. Her ears were ringing with Eddie’s sobs.

She sounded as if her throat was full of blood. Richie could already see Eddie’s face in her mind, red with tears streaming down her cheeks.

She must be so scared. Her Eddie...Eddie...Edd-

_Richie gasped._

_Acting as a lookout from behind one of the trees, Richie had not noticed that Patrick was quietly creeping behind her._

_Just a few paces from the sheet, the greasy fuck had managed to get close enough to pounce._

Patrick had grabbed a handful of hair on the side Richie’s head, his other arm snaking tightly across her neck. He chuckled darkly into her ear, holding the back of her head close to his chin.

**In shock, Richie had dropped the bat.**

It fell to the floor and rolled down the hill, stopping at a mound of leaves behind one of the tree’s holding up the filthy sheet, masking whatever Henry was doing to Eddie.

She was so close, close enough to hear Eddie so clearly.

Bowers seemed to be laughing at something; Eddie had let out another hopeless sob...

Richie’s eyes darted to the sheet desperately.

“Ever taken dick before faggot?” Patrick grinned against her neck. “Want me to show you what you’re missing?”

Patrick was only slightly taller than Richie, but he was stronger.

Richie clawed at the arm he had draped around her neck, but Patrick appeared to be unfazed by how the girl was tearing at his skin.

Hissing curse words, she tried to edge her head away from the tight fist he had on her hair.

Patrick snickered, his grip now tightening.

He could hear Richie beginning to choke, her growls and snarls now shifting into heavy wheezes. He could tell he was hurting her. He could feel it.

...And he fucking **loved** it.

Gutting cats was getting boring...Patrick figured it was about time he sought after...bigger prey...feeling life slipping out of something bigger than a cat...it was so much more thrilling. Made his toes curl in his broken sneakers.

He hadn’t realized that he was starting to drool, his mouth ajar as he began to breathe shaky breaths of air behind Rachel.

_As Patrick lost himself in his own fantasies, Richie was trying not to lose consciousness._

Tears prickled her eyes as she looked at the sheet helplessly. She felt her vision blurring slightly despite her glasses still being on.

A few more minutes of this and Richie wouldn’t make it. She could feel the fight leaving her body.

Eyeing the bat on the ground a few paces below her (though right now it looked like a thin silver stick), Richie arched her back. It wasn’t strong enough to release Patricks grip on her head...but it was enough to startle him, making him loosen his arm around her neck.

Richie was able to take a sharp breath.

“Fucking cunt...c’mere” Patrick growled, pulling her head back towards him.

Before he could get the chance to return her into their previous position, Richie swiped one of her long legs across Patricks.

Still gripping on her hair, they both fell to the ground, Rachel on top of the taller boy, both now looking straight at each over, full of hatred...

_.....until Patrick began to cackle._

Richie glared down at him. One of her hands were clutching on the fist Patrick had rested on her head. The other was around his neck.

Patrick was unfazed, seemingly losing himself in whatever he found so fucking funny.

Finally regaining his composure (that is, if he had any in the first place), Patrick’s ugly laugh died out.

He smiled his creepy smile at Richie, his thumb rubbing against her arm as her grip on his neck grew tighter.

“Y’know...” Patrick grinned, “...If you be a good girl for me...and let me do what I want....”

His eyes darted to the sheet.

_“...I could ask Henry to let you watch.”_

Patrick looked back up at her, licking his lips lecherously. Richie felt her entire body grow cold.

Whatever face Richie was making, Patrick seemed to take it as a sign to continue...

“ _I know you’ve got something for that little slut_ ”, He went further.

“ _Everyone in town can see it. I could smell it the moment I first saw you together. I bet you’ve always imagined the sounds she’d make while getting fucked”_

**_Richie could hear Eddie crying quietly._ **

**_The hair on the back of her neck stood up. Goosebumps were growing everywhere._ **

**_Patrick beamed up at her. His expression one of pure, unfiltered evil._ **

_“I think you’ve always wanted to screw Kaspbrak, huh Richie?_ ” He snorted. “Bet you’ve dreamt about it for a long, long time.”

**_He could feel Richie’s hand shaking around his neck._ **

“If you do as I say...if you do everything I tell you to do, who knows...”

_Patrick looked straight into her eyes._

“I might ask if Henry’ll let you join in.”

......

_Richie’s shoulders relaxed as she took one long, deep breath of air._

_Her hand wasn’t shaking anymore._

Patrick genuinely smiled, now excited.

“Either way, when he’s done with her she’s all **yo** -”

**........**

**Without any word, Richie head butted Patrick.**

Their foreheads smashed together hard and Richie’s glasses flew off.

The move was unexpected and Patrick had released his grip on Richie’s head. He looked up at her dumbly.

“Wh...Wha-”

Richie head butted him again. She could feel blood dripping down her nose now...but she didn’t care.

**She was going to kill this fucker.**

She looked back down at Patrick. His mouth was moving, expression pleading her. Richie couldn’t hear him.

_.......correction._

**_She wasn’t listening._ **

She head butted him again. And again. And again...until she couldn’t even feel the pain anymore. She knew her head was probably throbbing...but she’ll continue till she’s certain that Patrick won’t get up.

Not for a looooong while.

Lost in a rhythm, Richie continued to smash her face against Patrick’s, her teeth grinding together after every hit until-

_Richie heard something._

_She froze immediately at the sound._

It was a voice...Henrys.

He had called Patrick’s name from behind the sheet.

The voice had managed to break Richie from her trance.

She hadn’t realized that Patrick was already passed out, his entire face fucked, his hair matted in his and Richie’s blood.

Wincing at the gore below her, Richie wiped a bloody, trembling hand across her bleeding nose. No doubt she just made her face filthier by the gesture. Slowly stooping sideways, she dug her other hand into the mount of dirt beside her and fished out her glasses, now just barely in one piece. She could feel that the bridge was loose, disconnected and only holding together by the small piece of tape she had carelessly stuck around it a few days before.

It will have to do for now.

Attempting to stand, Richie crouched her body beside Patrick, avoiding touching the unconscious boy any further.

_God...as much as she hated the bastard, she felt relief that his chest was still heaving. Being a possible murderer would most definitely put her University offer in jeopardy..._

Turning around, she eyed the bat one stretch away from where she stood. It was right next to one of the tree’s holding up the filthy sheet, which was fluttering more now that it was getting windier. 

Richie sank back down to her knees. She figured that in a lower position, if she was right by the tree and the sheet suddenly flew upwards there would be less chance that she’d be seen.

Crawling steadily, Richie made her way as softly as she could towards the bat.

Her head was faced towards the ground, making sure to avoid any twigs or sticks that could suddenly snap from below her. In this position her nose was leaking once again, leaving a faint trail of blood in her path.

Finally close to the bat, Richie reached out a quivering hand to take it.

Just as her hand made contact with it, a strong breeze shot past her neck, making her shoulders freeze at the chill. The gust of wind was strong enough to hoist the sheet upwards.

As it fluttered back, a corner snagged onto a jutted piece of bark sticking out on the side of the tree.

_Richie now had a glimpse of Henry’s back._

He was leaning over a dirty rag on the floor, his upper torso making harsh movements. 

Richie narrowed her eyes at what appeared to be a clothes pile beside him.

**Oh god.**

She leaned in a little closer...It was a black shirt and red shorts. The clothes Eddie had been wearing that morning.

Completely ripped up and lying in a heap beside Henry and -....

_Richie saw a tanned pair of legs shoot out from under Henry, kicking wildly at his upper chest, before the older boy grabbed it and slammed it down._

Eddie’s feet had been tied together, one of her white shoes was missing and her socks were so dirty, completely covered in filth.

“ **N...NO** ”, Richie heard Eddie scream, “ **FUCKING GET OF ME BOWERS**!!”

Standing at the sound of her voice, Richie could now see Eddie clearly from where she was behind the tree.

The fucker had ripped off all of Eddie’s clothes, leaving her in her underwear. Her face was red, wet with tears as she thrashed wildly against the boy, who was pressing himself closely to her.

Richie watched Eddie’s eyes widen with fear as Henry began groping her, massaging her breasts visibly hard.

**Richie was about to fucking explode.**

Any plan she had been about to make was pushed aside at the image before her.

Both of her hands were on the handle of the bat as she carefully stepped onto the other side of the sheet, now completely visible if Henry were to turn at any time.

Preparing to knock the mullet wearing asshole into next year, Eddie’s cries suddenly stopped.

_Richie paused._

What was it? Was Henry saying something to her?

Did he do something?

**Did he have a knife?**

_Richie hadn’t thought of that. One sour move and Henry could easily swipe at Eddie’s neck...she had to make sure he wasn’t wielding anything..._

_Richie was sweating._

_She couldn’t take it. She couldn’t stand watching this...hearing this..._

**_Richie saw Henry suddenly shoot back up. His body tensed. Fuck. FUCK._ **

**_...Had he heard her???_ **

Richie immediately sank back to the floor.

She was still not close enough to run at him. If he did have a knife or that rusty blade he always carried on him then there would be no doubt that he’d whip it out at Eddie within seconds.

Richie was back to crawling, one arm suspended in the air to avoid pulling her bat along the floor, making any unnecessary noises.

It looked like whatever had made Bowers shoot up like that had nothing to do with Richie. The boy was back leaning over Eddie, the girl now crying more quietly.

_Richie felt a vein on her temple throbbing._

......

She was now only a few steps behind Henry.

The perfect distance to strike.

The feeling of adrenaline began to rise in Richie’s chest. She was about to give this boy brain damage.

Richie would gladly go to jail for killing Bowers, if it means saving Eddie.

It would be her fucking honour.

As she carefully put her bat down to pull herself up...

_...she heard a tiny voice._

It was enough to make her go completely rigid. The adrenaline flew out of her chest and fell out her mouth, along with a breath she didn’t know she had been holding.

All the sounds around them went silent.

The wind wasn’t blowing anymore. Eddie wasn’t crying and Henry appeared to be just...looking at her. Astounded at what she had just said.

“... _Richie_ ”

..Eddie had just called Richie’s name.

**...Did she know that Richie was there?**

Had she seen her from where she was hiding, holding onto the bat she was planning to knock Henry out with?

_...No. That wasn’t possible._

Eddie was lying on her back below Henry...There’s no way she could possibly see her from that position.

It didn’t make sense.

Why did she say her name?

Why did she call out for her...why did she-

“... **RICHIE**?!”

Henry suddenly roared in laughter.

The sound was so sudden that it set everything back into motion. The wind resumed to blow. Eddie remained quiet.

Henry hacked out another ugly laugh.

**“...as in Richie THE DYKE Tozier...are you fucking serious??”**

Richie listened in silence

**“...PATRICK ARE YOU GETTING THIS?!”**

Richie tensed, expecting for Henry to suddenly turn around...but to her relief he remained facing forward, continuing to scoff at whatever he was getting at.

_...Because Richie had no **IDEA** what he was getting at..._

Henry snickered at the small girl. He leaned down, his voice taking a more scathing tone, dripping like acid.

**  
“Looks like Tozier isn’t the only fag in Derry!!”**

**......**

Richie grinded her teeth.

Bowers has gone mad...ok he’s gone madder.

 _Absolutely crazy_.

He had no idea what he was spewing. The hair gel on his head must have seeped into his ears and scrambled with his brains because...because no way was that true.

Eddie wasn’t like her.

Eddie liked boys.

Eddie liked good, kind strong boys. With perfect skin and perfect teeth. The type of boys you'd read about in those shitty fairy tale books.

She liked guys who were honest and brave and smart...Like Bill! Someone who didn't make un-funny jokes every 2 minutes...who wears clean clothes in the mornings...and doesnt forget to brush their teeth sometimes...

_Someone as special as Eddie deserved to be happy._

No.

Eddie wasn’t like Richie

Henry was fucking lying.

Richie didn’t know why Eddie had called her name but...but...

......

**“How about I do something to you that she can’t?”**

Richie felt her heart jump at the words Henry had just hissed.

Richie heard Eddie mumble out sounds of confusions as Henry shifted slightly.

From where Richie was crouching (Now directly behind him) she saw the boy swiftly turning her over, before pulling her up to him from behind.

Some of her chestnut locks fell over his shoulder as he held her up with the rope he had tied around her arms.

Richie could see the boy fumbling around in his pocket with his right hand pulling out a...

_....FUCK SHE HAD BEEN RIGHT!!_

_Henry had pulled out his old dagger._

**Richie shot straight up.**

Henry had Eddie hoisted between his legs. The girl squirmed under his hold.

“...What are you... **NO PLEASE HENRY STOP PLEASE PL-“**

Henry began cutting something as Eddie began to sob, loudly now.

“ **FUCKING SHUT UP!!”** Henry roared.

Richie saw the muscle on his left arm tense.

Eddie let out a whimper.

**Richie stood straight up behind Henry, both hands on her bat.**

Eddie turned her head around towards Henry.

Her eyebrows were furrowed, tears glistening in her pretty brown eyes, her lips red from being bitten into so hard.

She looked behind Henry.

Her eyes widened. A tear rolled down her freckled cheek as she looked into Richie’s eyes.

**“Richie...?”**

**RICHIE PULLED OUT HER METAL BAT AND SWUNG IT AT HENRY’S HEAD.**

**.................**

Henry immediately fell to the ground, sprawled across the heap where he had thrown Eddie’s clothes earlier.

Eddie let out a scream as she fell out from between Henry’s legs, onto her back on the rag below her.

Landing, she immediately looked up towards Richie.

The tall girl looked down at her. Her entire body was shaking, the bat falling instantly from her hands.

She slowly moved to where Eddie was lying, hovering over her for a few seconds before falling to her knees.

Now at eye level with her, Eddie could see tears falling from Richie’s eyes behind her (now sUpEr bRoKeN) glasses.

Richie chocked back a sob as she crawled towards her.

Finally reaching Eddie, she wrapped her arms around the small girl.

_“Eddie...”_ Richie cried, _“Eddie...baby did he hurt you...are you ok?”_

The tall girl embraced her tightly, her face buried into the crook of her neck.

Eddie could feel the tears in Richie’s eyes rubbing against her...along with... **..!!!!**

“Richie!!” Eddie gasped

“...Your covered in blood...what happened to you? Who did thi-.. **Patrick!!!!** “

_Eddie began to panic, having forgotten that the tall boy had disappeared some time ago._

**“Richie what abou-“**

Richie snorted, burying her nose back into Eddie’s hair.

“I dealt with Patrick...don’t worry about him”.

The blood on Richie’s face was enough to make Eddie believe it.

Eddie’s body relaxed.

The two girls returned to their embrace.

Eddie no longer felt like crying. Not now that Richie was here.

_Thank god..Thank god..._

Eddie attempted to put her own arms around the girl till she remembered that her hands were still tied behind her back...not to mention her legs were still tightly wrung together. Henry had tied the knots so tight that her joints felt numb.

She shouldered Richie off, who in return looked down at the freckled girl curiously as she wiped the tears off her face...along with blood...ew...

Under her gaze Eddie was suddenly hit with a wave of realization that she was literally in her under wear...and not her regular set either.

_God...today...of all the fucking days she had to get abducted by the neighbourhood psychos.....it had to be the ONE TIME she wore her new lingerie...ffs...it wasn’t cheap..._

Eddie went slightly pink.

“Uh...Richie...d’you mind?”

Eddie weakly pulled her legs towards chest, her eyes darting at the rough, thin jute rope that was cutting into her skin.

_God, was it necessary for Henry to tie her THAT tightly?? The friction between her skin and the cord was burning so bad on her wrists and ankles. Richie’s utter hatred for the boy was bubbling over..._

Richie studied the rope around Eddie’s ankles...then automatically travelled up her legs, doing a once over of Eddie’s entire body and...oh damn.

_Oh damn is right Richie you fucking moron...this is **SO** not the time to be drooling over your _ **FRIEND** _. Your **F.R.I.E.N.D**....you’re...beautiful...wearing only pink lingerie while being held in your arms .... **friEND...FUCKSAKE.**_

It looked like the shock and tension of what just happened had dulled a little at this image...Richie was suddenly back in reality. Her face turned a bright shade of red as she quickly shifted her gaze away.

“I uh..umm..y...eah...c..ourse” Richie tried to sound somewhat strong and cool...or calm at least.

The wobble in her voice made it sound like she was doing a porky pig impression...yikes.

“I’ll just..uh...let me get that for you...”

Eddie shifted back and put her tanned legs onto Richie’s lap, the tall girl visibly gulping as she clumsy made an attempt to undo the knot.

As she tried to untwist the cord, Eddie sneaked a look at the other girl.

She was completely focused on getting Eddie untied, her tongue sticking out in thought. Richie always stuck out her tongue when she was thinking deep about something.

Without another word the tall girl stuck her fingers between two ends of the knot and tried to rip it apart...only making it tighter.

She groaned out loud, causing Eddie to giggle.

Richie looked up at her smiling.

_Only someone like Eddie could have something like this happen to her...and still be giggling at the end of it. Eddie must have been so, so scared._

_Her Eddie...her brave girl. Edele Kaspbrak was the strongest person Richie had ever met. She was so incredible. So strong and smart and sweet and-_

“...and what?”

Richie’s eyes darted back to Eddies.

**Uh oh.**

“..And what...what?” Richie sweated slightly. “What’re you on about..?”

Eddie rolled her eyes.

“You tell me Pepe le pew! You said something about me being strong and smart and...”

She blushed a little.

“...Sweet or whatever”.

Eddie looked back at Richie.

“What was the other thing you were gonna say? After sweet..?”

Richie swallowed. 

Her heart thumped in her chest not so differently from how it was thumping only a few moments ago.

Eddie sat there, waiting for her to answer.

**...And that’s what Richie did.**

_“Eddie..I think you’re the strongest...smartest...sweetest...most brave little spit fire I’ve ever met in my entire life”_

Eddie held back a breath as Richie leaned forward and stroked the side of her face.

Her thighs were draped over Richie’s lap as the girl moved forward, now only inches away from her.

Eddie could feel Richie’s breath on her lips.

“...Eddie..I want to...”

Eddie’s eyes glanced behind Richie only for a second...before growing wide like saucers.

“ _Fuck_ ” She whispered.

Richie leaned back almost immediately, her face burning brighter than ever before.

**“T...THATS...I MEAN...I DIDNT...I....”**

_Eddie looked back at Richie, her expression one of horror._

**“RICHIE BEHIND YOU!!”**

Richie could hear it now...someone was making a run at her from behind.

Automatically, Richie lunged towards Eddie, her arms encasing her as she rolled her sideways across the floor and off the filthy rag below.

This was done on good instinct as Henry fell right into the open space. His rough, splintered fingers were holding onto a large rock which quickly fell from his grasp as he made contact with the floor.

Collecting himself, he looked at where Richie was standing.

Eddie was on the floor behind her, still not free from the rope holding her wrists and ankles together.

“ **RICHIE THE BAT”** Eddie yelled.

Richie looked at where she had dropped her metal baseball bat, right by the clothes pile that Henry had left in a heap. The silver shine of the bat glistened against it.

Following her gaze, Henry shot up and made a lunge towards the bat, leaving the large rock abandoned.

He was closer and laughing at the certainty that he would reach it first...

...at least he was laughing...till Richie threw herself on top of him.

As Eddie cried out at the two of them, Richie and Henry wrestled each over on the dirt mounds of the barrens.

_The two were an even match, both being skinny (the skinniness was hereditary on Richie’s part...but in Henry’s case he was clearly malnourished). It was also helpful that Richie was taller with long legs._

The taller girl entwined her (suuuuuuuuuper useful) legs around the boy as she swiped at his face, landing a few good hits.

_Henry squirmed under her hold, a stream of “ **GET OFF ME YOU FUCKING FAG, LESBIAN BITCH, YOU UGLY FUCKING BITCH LET GO WHORE YOU TRANNIE YOU...YOU...** -“ spat from his mouth as he thrashed about wildly from under her._

_Honestly...at this point you had to be a little impressed with the mullet wearing asshole...he was bleeding out his fucking ears for god’s sake...and STILL trying to put up a fight...like...bravo lmao..._

Henry roared out in anguish as one of Richie’s bony fists made contact with his jaw.

As all this was happening, Eddie was cheering Richie on.

_Seriously...if Eddie wasn’t so amazing at track she would have made a pretty good cheerleader. The girl had a strong pair of lungs on her, loud enough to put Greta Keene to shame._

**“GET HIM RICHIE!!”** Eddie hollered. “ **GIVE HIM A CHINESE BURN!!!**

Richie snorted.

_A few years back Stan had come into the losers hideout, hiding a nasty burn on his wrist. Richie could never forget how painful it had looked, the image staying on her mind._

_Looks like she wasn’t the only one who remembered the incident._

Yanking out one of the boy’s arms from the grip between her legs, Richie twisted at the skin on his wrist. Henry shrieked out at the burn.

**"THIS ONES FOR STANLEY!!!"**

Eddie let out a whoop

**“THATS RIGHT RICHIE!!! NOW THE RIBS!!...KICK HIM IN THE RIBS!!!”**

“ **YES MAAM!!!”,** Richie called back.

As Henry nursed what looked to be a bleeding mouth full of broken teeth, the other hand around his burnt wrist, Richie stood over him and swiped at his ribs.

**_THAT_ ** _was the showstopper._

The boy immediately screamed before going silent, curling up into a little ball.

**“YESS!!! HAH TAKE THAT BITCH”** Eddie cheered.

Taking a moment to admire her work, Richie was about to make a really **REALLY** cool one liner like , “ _Another one bites the dust...”_ ...OOH or maybe _“See ya later Navigator_ ”...when she suddenly heard a groaning sound...

...One that wasn’t coming from Henry...

_What the **FUCK**...are these guys fucking immortal or something!?!?_

Without taking the chance to find out, Richie jumped over Henry and fumbled over to Eddie, the girl looking panicked by the groaning noise that was beginning to grow louder.

Eddie gasped as Richie held her up bridal style and began making her way up the hill of the barrens.

_Richie made sure to walk a distance from the sheet in the very likely case that Patrick was making an attempt to get up._

The burst of fear and desperation to get out of there made Eddie almost weightless in her arms.

Eddie could feel Richie’s heart racing, knowing that Richie could most definitely feel hers, now that she was flattened against the taller girl’s upper body with nothing but her bare skin and Richie’s thin shirt.

She felt that fainting sensation once again but fought against it, her hands grinding the rope around her wrists further into her skin.

The dull pain kept her conscious as Richie treated quickly up through the dirt hill.

........

Pressing the freckled girl tighter against her body, Richie managed to finally reach the last few steps over the edge of the barrens, now back on the main road.

Catching sight of Eddie’s bike, Richie kicked it up hard with one foot, getting it standing in one go against a metal pole holding up a “Caution: Drive Slow” sign.

Without any hesitation, Richie perched herself on the saddle and sat Eddie across her lap, the brown haired girl burying her face deep into Richie’s chest.

Both her arms were around Richie’s neck, her tied wrists resting on the girl’s nape.

Making sure that Eddie was in a secure position, Richie took one last look towards the black abyss of the barrens.

Richie took a breath of air...then spat at it, before cycling away.

Away from the Barrens.

Away from Henry and Patrick.

_Far, far away._

......

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eEeEe Whats going to happen next?? Is a fight coming up where questions will be answered? Will they make up? Will they make out?! will richie fuck up or will they..idk fuck?  
> ...uhhh i havent decided yet lol. Next chap coming soon tho! tysm as always for reading and I hope this fight scene was satisfying to read!! xxx 
> 
> PLEASE READ BELOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> On a different not, hope yall will give me your opinions on this... I have two other reddie fic ideas that is currently in the works...but i wanted to ask which one people prefer.
> 
> Choice A is a fantasy AU where all the losers present as a mythical creature at the age of 18...Eddie is presenting late but all the losers (including Sonia) is sure she'll be an angel...but she turns out to be a SUCCUBUS and chaos insues lol...
> 
> Choice B is A crimelord AU...where richie is at a casino and see's Eddie. She's certain that Eddie is a undercover spy that has been sent to seduce her so she ends up kidnapping her for intel...turns out Eddie just happend to be there by coincidence and had nothing to do with anything...BUT ITS TOO LATE SHE KNOWS TOO MUCH...and is now stuck in a life of crime with asshole richie...who she grudgingly notices is kind of...cute...but an ASS!!!
> 
> please let me know which u would prefer to read LOL tysm xxxxxxx
> 
> (lol my friend asked if ill make it male reddie rather than fem but...idk i might add some smut into it and I prefer to stay in my w/w element if im writing smut u kno...but hnnnnnggg idk u can just ignore the pronouns? lmao? lol?


	6. What the Hele Edele

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> things r about to get a little...explicit.....

**CHAPTER 6**

Richie raced back to her house, one hand gripped on Eddie as the other held onto the handlebar so hard that pink flecks of paint peppered onto the trail behind them. She wasn’t really conscious of it but her entire body felt like it was burning, even the behinds of her ears felt tingly.

Eddie listened to Richie’s heart beating as she held her arms around the taller girl’s neck.

The rhythm was erratic, thumping like crazy against her ear. Eddie knew that hers was probably doing the same but she wasn’t really conscious of it either. Her bare legs swayed where they hung off Richie’s lap, snuggling herself in the warmth of the breeze and the strong hand of the girl she loved around her waist.

It was late afternoon now.

The sky was orange and shadows of rooftops loomed across the street, spiking the pavements as Richie cycled past. Despite all the unlucky shit that had happened that day, the two girls were lucky that no one happened to be around at the moment.

Derry wasn’t really known to be safe during the evenings _(the event beforehand being a good example of **THAT**!)_ and they were both alone...

_With one girl injured and the other...half naked, being out and about right now wasn’t exactly ideal..._

But no one happened to be about at that moment.

No women with wandering eyes who enjoyed spreading gossip. No men to leer at Eddie... _which was the fucking LAST thing Richie was going to tolerate after what she had just been through_...No teenagers lingering around that might come across them as they rode through the neighbourhood...

So the girls did manage to get _some_ luck that day.

**Also, Richie actually got to beat the shit out of the two bullies who’ve been tormenting her and her friends (and pretty much most of the youth in Derry) for years...which** **was pretty fucking cool.**

_In any other scenario, Richie would have probably sprinted to Eddie’s house to impress her with the details...fuck she might have gone over to Bill’s just so she could brag about it. Let him know that she’d managed to do what he had been dreaming of doing for years..._

_But Richie didn’t feel like bragging...at least not at the moment.._

Eddie had been all alone when Henry and Patrick took her.

She was alone when they pulled her down the barrens...where she used to play as a child with the other losers...

**...God, that was fucked up.**

Richie could feel some of her memories of that place sour slightly.

She shook her head.

Bragging to Bill was the last thing on her mind right now.

All she could think about was Eddie.

**Eddie was ok.**

**She’s fine. She’s breathing a little funny...her favourite shorts are destroyed and her knees are scraped...**

**_But Eddie was safe. She was in her arms, stroking the back of Richie’s tangled curls as the older girl raced down the block towards the driveway leading to her house._ **

........

As they finally made their way up Richie’s driveway, Eddie felt the wheels of the bike slowly stopping to a halt.

The brown eyed girl peeked a glance at the fence door beside them from where she had nestled herself on Richie’s lap. Richie straightened up a little as she swapped the hand around Eddie’s waist to stand the bike against her garage door.

Thinking that Richie would be aching all over, Eddie attempted to remove her tied arms from around her neck, but before she got the chance the taller girl swung her leg over the crossbar.

Eddie was hoisted up into the air, Richie’s splintery hands clutching Eddie’s upper thigh and torso as if she were as light as a feather.

Eddie hated to admit it, but her heart was fluttering like a medieval maiden as Richie kicked open the fence door and marched towards the front porch, her dark brows furrowed and creased in the middle.

When they got to the door, Eddie had expected that Richie would whip out a key from somewhere, maybe even knock, but the tall girl was on a roll. Eddie gasped as she raised a long leg and kicked it hard, the door smacking wide open.

Eddie knew this means that Richie didn’t bother locking her doors after leaving the house which was PRETTY DANGEROUS...but...

_...Richie was so fucking hot...fucking hell....._

“Richie...” Eddie hissed as Rachel carried Eddie over the threshold like a bride;

“..What if your parents heard yo-“

**“Good Idea Eddie-MA!! PAAAAAAA**!!?” Richie scrambled through the hall into her living room.

**“MA!!! EDDIE’S BEEN HURT...DAD!? WHERE ARE YOU GUYS?!?”**

Eddie went silent in Richie’s arms.

She had forgotten that parents were there to help you when shit like this happened...

_No doubt if she were to confide in her mother over what Henry and Patrick had almost done she would immediately take her to the hospital to check if she was pregnant or had STD’s regardless if they touched her or not...then the ride home would be followed with a rant about what she had been wearing that day, followed by another lecture about how she chose to flaunt her “baby fat”._

The thought was slowly putting Eddie into a bad mood...which was COMPLETELY understandable after everything...

_...but it also brought back the reason why she had walked home alone in the first place..._

Richie was completely oblivious to what was going on in Eddie’s mind at that moment. Still with Eddie in her arms, she trekked up her staircase and walked down the hallway outside her and her parents Rooms.

Richie kicked at their door a few times, the pauses followed by silence.

She tried 2 or 3 times before sighing.

Richie muttered something about them probably ”Dogging in a park somewhere” (...Eddie must have misheard) then walked into her own room.

//////

**_Richie’s room was just as Eddie remembered._ **

The walls were papered with posters of bands that Eddie had never heard of...movies she wasn’t allowed to see...there were photos of the others. Photos of the losers, playing together in the park.

There were photos that Richie had taken with Eddie and Beverly in the booth at the arcade, laughing as they made silly faces.

There were a few photos of just Eddie and Richie.

And then there were photos of...just her.

Leading down from the board to a corner beside Richie’s wall were just photos of Eddie.

There was one where she was smiling, a little dab of ice cream resting on the end of her little upturned nose.

In another she was glaring angrily towards the camera as she tried to block the light of the cameras flash. Another was of Eddie smiling shyly; wearing the dress Beverly made her for the winter formal dance.

_The dress had been beautiful, masterfully crafted by Beverly in secret to be presented on the day of the dance. It also happened to be the first time she had ever snuck out, as Eddie was usually routine with sneaking people (Richie) into her house. It had been an amazing night, the losers choosing to go as a group...though they actually spent like 30 minutes at the actual dance before they ditched and had their own dance at Ben’s house (whose mother was actually really lovely!)_

_Eddie’s mum had never found out after all this time, making the memory of that night unspoilt and perfect._

Followed by that were other photos. Some old, others new-ish...just photos of Eddie in a corner beside Richie’s bed...

........

Eddie sighed.

_She knew better than to get herself worked up again. At this point she was just being pathetic. Richie was her friend. Her **best** friend._

_Being “bEsTiEs” WAS and IS a good enough reason to have a collage of your best friends face taped beside the wall of your bed._

_Eddie felt like a bad friend for not doing the same for Richie..._

Eddie looked at it longingly, her bad mood increasing slightly.

Richie looked down at Eddie as she held her in her arms and followed her gaze towards the wall.

**Richie flushed red.**

Slowly placing Eddie on the foot of her bed (turned AWAY from the wall), Richie clambered over the sheets in her shoes and stacked her pillows against it. Completely out of sight and mind.

_...Hopefully._

Once certain that it was no longer visible, Richie pulled Eddie’s wrists from behind her back so that she could try again to loosen the rope around it. Holding her hands up to her face, she frowned.

Deep, ugly red marks were cut around Eddie’s wrist from the rough rope. It looked so painful, and it probably hurt like hell.

Eddie looked down at the sheet below her as she sat kneeling on the bed.

She didn’t say anything as Richie inspected her hands.

Mumbling to herself, Richie fumbled with the rope and accidentally thumbed at a cut in the crook of Eddie’s purlicue, causing her to hiss at the pain.

Richie immediately let go, her breath caught in her throat.

“Shit...fuck, you ok Eds!?”

“...Don’t call me that” Eddie replied weakly, her shoulders untensing as the pain faded away slightly.

Her head hung back down as she became silent once again.

Richie looked at her.

“...Eds?”

Eddie shot up again, this time turning her face slightly behind her back towards Richie.

_“I LITERALLY JUST FUCKING TOLD YOU NOT TO CALL ME THA-“_

**Eddie stopped.**

**Richie was looking at her with wide eyes.**

_From the bruising, one of them will be particularly black and gnarly looking in a day or two...Her nose was covered in dry blood, some of which had splattered onto her hideous Hawaiian shirt, her hair was wild and dirty from when she wrestled Henry, her glasses were stuck together with nothing but a filthy line of tape..._

**Eddie couldn’t do this anymore.**

She couldn’t even pretend to be mad at Richie anymore.

Rachel Tozier. Her best friend. The most...Important person in her life. The only person she would trust with anything...everything...

Richie deserved to be happy.

_If she wanted to live alone in September and cut her out...and date a girl whose name meant “Star Chicken” in French...if Richie wanted to leave the memory of Eddie in Derry and start fresh somewhere new..._

_Who was she to stop her?_

Richie deserved to be happy.

**...with or without Edele Kaspbrak.**

_Eddie could accept that. She had too._

_Her heart had been indirectly broken so many times over the years._

_She had been fighting for something that had never been hers to begin with._

Eddie looked into Richie’s eyes.

“...I’m sorry.” She said in a small voice.

**Richie let out a shuddered breath and embraced Eddie from behind.**

“Don’t apologize Eddie...I should have never let you walk home alone...it’s all my fau-“

“Richie...” Eddie cut in, “I was the one who decided to walk home alone, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

Eddie couldn’t see behind her, but she heard a loud sniffing sound.

_Her chest filled with guilt._

“Richie...” She said.

“...I’m sorry I’ve been hard on you lately.”

Richie let out a confused sound between sniffs.

Eddie knew she was probably wiping her snot bubbles with her arm...Eddie powered on.

“I’ve been unfair...for a long time... If you don’t want to live with me next year then that’s fine Rich”.

_There was a pause._

Eddie waited for a response from behind her.

Richie wasn’t hugging her anymore, but she wasn’t trying to untie the knot again either.

Another moment passed.

Just before Eddie was about to speak again, she felt a warm hand snake into her palm, the sensation making her almost gasp out.

Almost.

“Dude”, Richie said in a low voice,

“If you think I’m letting you out of my sight again after that, you’re fucking crazy.”

**.....**

**Ok...remember how Eddie said she couldn’t stay mad at Richie anymore?**

**_...Well, this is an exception._ **

**_....._ **

****

****

**_“_ ** **DUDE ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS?!?”**

Eddie had slipped from her kneeling position, her face and upper body faced straight at Richie.

**“I’VE BEEN PRACTICALLY BEGGING YOU TO LIVE WITH ME NEXT YEAR AND YOU HAD ME THINKING I WAS HOLDING YOU BACK OR WHATEVER REASON YOU REFUSE TO TELL ME...AND NOW..?!**

Eddie wheezed in fury;

**“...NOW YOU SAY YES?! AND WHY? BECAUSE YOU WANT TO FUCKING BABYSIT ME!?!?**

Eddie took a large breath, her voice growing hoarse from yelling.

Richie looked on with a worried expression, as if she were scared Eddie was about to faint out of pure anger. Her arms reached out again to the small girl, but Eddie shouldered them off (as her hands and legs were still tiED GODDAMIT...)

“Eddie...” Richie tried quietly, “I want to live with y-“

“ **No** ”.

_Richie stopped._

She looked at Eddie blankly, her arms faltering in the air where Eddie had knocked them off.

“No...” Richie repeated after her...” What do you mean no”.

_Eddie raised her eyebrows._

“I said no Richie.”

_Eddie shuffled so that she was now fully facing Richie with her entire body._

“I don’t want to live with **YOU** anymore.”

**_...oh boy. Richie didn’t like that._ **

“You say you don’t want to be babysat and then you act like a baby, huh?” Richie glared at Eddie, her bloodied nostrils flaring.

“Who do you plan on living with then _princess_ , if not me!?”

_Eddie snorted. The fucking nerve...Richie’s reasoning for not rooming with her was that she needed to get away...and now she had the AUDACITY to get mad at Eddie for even SUGGESTING that she felt the same... **uGH!!!**_

“It’s none of your BUSINESS who I room with”, Eddie spat, “You should forget about me and move somewhere with your **GIRLFRIEND**!”

Richie gritted her teeth, her fists pawed at the sheet below her.

“Estella and I only went out for 2 months Eddie, and that was a **FUCKING YEAR AGO!!”**

_Richie was yelling at Eddie, and although Richie rarely ever yelled at Eddie, the smaller girl wasn’t taken back by it. Not at all._

“The way you were smooching earlier could have fucking fooled **ME**!! If that’s the case, maybe once uni starts you can find a new girlfriend!” Eddie snarled, “Someone like your last one...someone who’s tall with weird long fingers and a foreign name that translates into something STUPID and...and...Who looks like a YETI!”

Richie almost snorted at the stupidity of the whole argument, but Eddie looked as if she were about to explode.

“Eddie...” Richie tried to talk calmly again to diffuse the situation, “I don’t like Estella like that. I never really liked her like that. I like-“

“Hey man”, Eddie interrupted again, “If you’ve got a type then you’ve got a type!”

She shrugged dramatically.

“I can’t judge you for your taste in women. Now that were **DEFINETLY NOT** living with eachover, you’ll be free to take home as many **YETIS AS YOU WANT!”**

_Richie shot up from the bed and stood up, towering over the small girl, her face flush with anger._

“ **SORRY THAT WE DON’T ALL SHARE YOUR _DISTINGUISHED_ PREFERENCES”** Richie boomed.

**“YOU THINK THAT JUST BECAUSE YOU’D PREFER SOME BIG, MUSCLEY BONE HEAD GUY AROUND TO ACT AS YOUR FUCKING PRINCE CHARMING”-**

Eddie paled. “W...what?

_Richie wasn’t listening._

**“-SOMEONE LIKE BILL, WHO WOULD HAVE PROBABLY NEVER HAVE GOTTEN YOU INTO A SITUATION LIKE THIS IN THE FIRST PLACE, YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST...JUST THROW ME AWAY...WELL I...I...”**

“Bill...what has Bill got to do with anything?!”

**“...I DON’T CARE ABOUT FINDING SOMEONE ELSE TO ROOM WITH OR...OR STELLA FUCKING STAR CHICKEN...EDDIE...I WANT... I WANT...”**

_Richie’s face was burning red as she looked into Eddies. She felt her breath catch into her throat as tears brimmed in her eyes._

_Eddie looked up at her, her eyes wide as her cheeks grew pink._

“W...What do you want R...Richie” Eddie whispered.

**_There was a long silence._ **

_Richie looked down at Eddie. Eddie looked back._

_Richie had that look on her face._

_It was the same one she had during lunch back when they were in school earlier that day. From when she had Eddie pressed against the lockers, caged under her arms. Her mouth was the slightest bit open, her dark eyes once again fixated on Eddie’s lips. Eddie gulped._

“...What _do_ you want RicHI _-_ **!!!!!!”**

**Without hesitation, Richie shot down and pulled Eddie into a kiss.**

Eddie gasped the second their lips met, Richie’s tongue colliding with hers.

The taller girl had both her hands on Eddie, one gripping tightly onto her shoulder and the other tangled in her hair.

Once the realisation that they were kissing (like... **REALLY KISSING** ) hit her, Eddie relaxed into it.

Richie moaned as she began to respond, Eddie’s own little red tongue shyly darting into her mouth, entwining together. They were starting to make smacking sounds with their lips.

Some kisses were long and wet, others were...well... _biting_.

Richie panted as Eddie nipped her lower lip, making her knees go weak. The smaller girl groaned in response.

With her legs and hands still tied together, Eddie found herself falling onto the bed without any support to keep her up.

Lying on her back, she glanced towards Richie. Her lips were red and swollen, her eyes half lidded as she whimpered from the loss of touch.

_Richie was 90% sure she was dreaming...the remaining 10% being the pain from earlier and the sensation Eddie’s stare was creating between her legs..._

Richie kneeled back onto the bed and began crawling over Eddie.

The small girl breathed heavily as Richie gazed down at her.

Richie leaned down and began kissing her again, both her arms wrapped around Eddie’s waist so that her back was arched against the sheets. Richie licked and bit into her neck as Eddie mewled every time she felt Richie’s tongue against her skin.

Richie removed a hand from her waist and thumbed against Eddie’s lip.

She almost had a convulsion when she felt her lips part.

She shuddered as Eddie began sucking at the finger in her mouth, her burning tongue curling around it and moving to the rhythm she was rubbing her thighs against Richie with.

They were both squirming against each over now, both rubbing hard against the other as they continued to lock lips.

Feeling something soft and warm pressing against her chest, Richie absentmindedly removed her finger from Eddie’s mouth (the smaller girl reluctant to let it go) and placed a hand on it.

Eddie suddenly moaned out loud against Richie's ear...and Richie (i swear to god) could feel her crotch tingling at the sound.

_It was enough to break Richie out of the trance she was in._

Eddie looked back up at her, her face scarlet, eyes wide.

Richie marvelled at the sight before her.

She looked at Eddie’s dazed expression, her hair wild around her head as she lay flat on the bed beneath her. Richie’s eyes trailed from the shine of the spit she had left on Eddie’s swollen red lips to the marks she had left on her neck...

Richie looked at where her hands were now.

Both her hands were resting against Eddie’s breasts, the exposed pink skin bobbing as the girl breathed shaky breaths.

While Richie DID have big hands, they weren’t quite big enough to hold all of Eddie.

Richie spent a moment just looking at how pretty they looked...how warm and soft and supple they felt under her...

_Eddie cleared her throat._

“...Richie.”

Richie retreated, both her hands flying up as she went (if it were even possible) MORE red than ever. Falling out of Richie’s hold, Eddie’s breasts bounced out her grip.

_Richie could feel sweat on her brow._

**Dude. Eddie was half fucking naked. She was wearing lingerie and she was on her bed in her room and..and she KISSED HER. WITH HER MOUTH. AND...AND....BOOBS..AND..**

“RICHIE!”

Richie flinched. Fuck, she got lost in her head again.

Eddie looked up at her with an expression Richie couldn’t read. It made the taller girl panic slightly.

“E...Eddie I...” Richie began, her voice faltering, “I...I’m so sorry...I didn’t even...I...”

Her voice wobbled as Eddie perked upwards slowly so that she wasn’t lying flat on her back anymore.

More comfortable, Eddie’s brown eyes sank into Richies.

**Richie was in a blind panic now.**

“I’ll never touch you again Eddie I swear I...I’m a bad friend and I shouldn’t have j...just grabbed you, I...-“

_“Do you know what I want Richie?”_

Richie stopped.

She felt goose bumps on the back of her neck.

Eddie was still looking up at her, waiting.

“Wh...what?” Richie stuttered.

Eddie repeated the question.

_“Do you know...What I want?”_

Richie shivered.

The warmth she had been feeling before was rebuilding itself in her body. Her mouth and hands hungry again for contact.

“What do you want”

Eddie stared her down.

Her eyes sinking from Richie’s to the girl’s long pale neck, her strong arms that used to look like noodles when they were kids...down to her wide, warm hands, the knee’s of her long legs firmly arched above her.

Eddie moved to the side slightly, a view of her hands tightly tied together peeking from behind her.

“I want to touch you too Richie...”

**.........**

Richie immediately began to scramble off the bed, almost falling as her shoes made contact with the floor, Eddie giggling intoxicatingly from behind her. She flung herself out the room and practically jumped down the steps of her staircase into the kitchen to search for scissors or a knife or just anything to cut the rope around Eddie’s arms so that Eddie can fu **CKING TOUCH HER AS THEY MAKE OUT BECAUSE THIS IS REAL AND NOT A DREAM AND IS HAPPENING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

Richie whacked open the cupboards and drawers and dug through the butter knives and spatulas and rolling pins till she found a large, sharp and jaggered cooking knife.

Holding the knife up to her face and inspecting whether it was sharp enough to cut through a thick rope, Richie began to lose herself in thought again.

_Henry’s voice was sneering in the back of her mind;_

**“Looks like Tozier isn’t the only fag in Derry”**

........

Richie just kissed Eddie.

And Eddie kissed her back.

.....

Eddie kissed her back...she said she wanted to touch her...

_Richie stopped looking at the knife. Her heart was thumping again._

Eddie was straight though. Eddie didn’t like girls. She didn’t date girls. Eddie dates...

........

**Eddie’s never really dated anyone.**

_(Not that Richie was aware of...And if Eddie HAD been with anyone then trust me, she would fucking know about it...)_

...But no.

Eddie hadn’t really dated anyone.

Richie had contributed this to the fact that her mother would probably never shut up about it if she did..not to mention the fact that the boy’s of Derry high were more or less trash...Other than the boy’s of the Losers Club, that is.

_The Loser’s club..._

Putting aside how close Eddie and Richie had always been, Eddie had always had an equal affection towards the other Losers.

Sure, it was easy talking about stuff to Beverly...Ben was nice to be around, naturally good hearted and innocent...then there was Stan and Mike, both boys always willing to put everything on the line to help their friends.

Stanley, who was smart and calm, Mike who was strong and confident...

And then there was Bill.

Bill Denborough. The “ORIGINAL” best friend.

From the moment Richie had ever laid eyes on Eddie, the small girl was glued to his side.

Even in 1st grade it pissed Richie off seeing how close they were, how careful Bill was when playing with the pretty little girl in her pretty pink dress and pretty mary jane shoes and...UGH.

Richie knew she could be careful...she could play nicely with Eddie.

But noooo.

Not according to “bIg BiLl”, as Eddie liked to call him back then...

Every time she tried to join in on their games Bill would be there, instructing her to be gentler, not to pull Eddie around and to stop trying to hold her hands.

It made her 7 year old body boil with rage when Bill called Eddie’s name, the small pixie looking thing skipping towards him and quietly wrapping her small fingers around Bills hand as they flounced off together to play something boring like a puzzle or to read one of the boring stories Bill had written.

For some reason, Eddie loved listening to Bill’s stories which was... **fuck!!**

Richie could write stupid fucking stories.

She was great at writing stories!!

She once spent one whole morning writing up an amazing story for Eddie.

It was about a Beautiful princess with long wavy brown hair and freckles, her brave knight who was super funny and strong and cool and an ugly stupid gnome called Bill, who had a stutter and farted constantly.

One day the gnome farted so hard that he died. The princess and knight got married.

The end.

Eddie had tried to hide a giggle when reading the story, her small hand hiding it as Bill sat beside her.

His arms were folded in fury as he glared at Richie.

“The stutter was just a coincidence Billiam, sheesh”. Richie sighed. _Bill was so sensitive. Jesus._

Bill gritted his teeth. “The g...gnome was called Bill, R..richie...”

“Oh, sorry about that! It was the ugliest name I could think of **-!!!!!”**

The small boy threw himself at Richie and they were fighting within seconds, Eddie bawling as they pulled at eachovers hair and hurled petty insults towards the other.

A teacher ran in a moment later and they were separated to opposite corners of the room for the rest of recess.

Eddie sat with the teacher and played candy land.

After 1st grade, Richie was fortunate enough to meet Mike and Beverly, Mike having been homeschooled during year 1 and Beverly having just moved into the area.

Richie spent most of second year in her small group, forcing herself in between Eddie and Bill every once in a while just to see and talk to her (and to piss off Bill).

Richie noticed that she was getting prettier every time she saw her.

_It was weird._

_She was beginning to feel weird all the time now._

........

At the End of the Second school year, Mike had invited Bill to hang out a few times.

Richie had been pissed at first...till she found that wherever Bill went, Eddie appeared to tag along.

Just for the opportunity to see her Richie could play nice...and after hanging out a couple of times around Bill, Richie didn’t really have to play at being nice anymore.

Bill was actually pretty funny. Sometimes.

He was really nice to his little brother and he came up with fun ideas of what to play and had a good taste in music. He liked horror movies and like Richie, he enjoyed playing at the arcade and dipping his fries into his milkshake.

He wasn’t so bad actually.

_...And during a game of truth or Dare he admitted to having a crush on Beverly._

That was **_(strangely)_** reason enough for Richie to try and make amends.

She didn’t have the urge to strangle him anymore.

_Well...sometimes when she saw Eddie holding his hands or sticking close to him while they all walked about during the evenings it did irk her at times...but whatever._

The more time Eddie and Richie spent together, the closer and closer they became.

She wasn’t sticking as close to Bill as she used too, and Richie noticed that he didn’t seem to mind.

Before long, Eddie was holding onto Richie’s hand as they walked around the barrens. She sat on Richie’s lap at the Aladdin and played with Richie’s hair on the bus.

She even told her secrets about her mum.

How mean she was sometimes, the nasty things she would say.

**This was around the time Richie started visiting the Kaspbrak residence in secret, mounting the tree beside’s Eddie’s window and climbing through to make sure she was ok.**

After a few times she started coming over just... _Because_.

She wanted to swap Pokémon cards. She wanted her to try one of the muffins her mum had made. To hear her latest joke...any little thing was a good enough reason to visit Eddie.

Eddie began leaving her window open for her, Popping her head out with a big grin on her cute little face any time she heard a noise that could be Richie, trying to climb up the tree to see her.

“RICHIE!” She’d whisper loudly, “I missed you”.

_It made Richie’s stomach feel weird. But Richie didn’t want to dwell on that. She didn’t know what the feeling was...she only knew that she liked it. She liked it alot._

Around 4th grade, Stanley Uris joined the group.

Up till then he had usually stuck with a quiet crowd, but as seating arrangements changed and he was assigned to sit next to Richie, she was pleased to find that he was made of 50% sass and 40% sarcasm.

The 10% was hair. Curly, bouncy hair.

Richie invited him to sit with the others during lunch and from that point on he became a part of the losers. Loser no.5.

Loser no.6 was Ben Hanscom.

Around the time Ben joined the group, Richie was starting to struggle with her feelings.

She was slowly getting the gist that Eddie was different.

She didn’t look at her the same way she looked at other girls.

In class all the girls were obsessed with boy bands and actors and celebrities...and sure, Richie thought some of them were cute.

_But not as cute as Eddie. Not even half as cute as Eddie._

Richie was in the 8th grade now. During one lunchtime Beverly showed up with a sweet looking boy called Ben.

Ben liked history, and building stuff. He liked 80’s music, he liked cheesy chick fliks and he really, _really_ liked Beverly Marsh.

And Richie couldn’t blame him.

Beverly was fucking cool. Why wouldn’t he like her?

Problem was, she was currently dating Bill in the weird way that 13 year olds date.

They sometimes held hands to and from school. Kissed eachover with both their mouths in a tight line, their eyes clamped shut.

Richie found it hilarious but was also sort of jealous.

She wished she could do that type of stuff with Eddie, but that would never happen. Richie was too gross. And weird.

Oh yeah, and being gay was disgusting according to the kids in school.

_Richie didn’t want to be disgusting. Eddie hates disgusting things._

**So she kept it in.**

The loser’s club were now up a member and they liked to have fun together.

They went to the movies all the time, avoided Bowers and his cronies and they swam in the quarry after school was out.

_And then Beverly and Bill broke up._

The spark had fizzled out, both teens not really feeling it anymore. Not to mention that Beverly was starting to hang out with Ben more often, endeared by how passionate he was in poetry and his never ending interest in the red head.

Of course Bill still loved her.

All the losers loved eachover, but Beverly and Bill knew that it wasn’t romantic anymore.

It was a clean break.

Stan, Mike and Eddie had been worried that things would be weird but it was more or less the same.

Beverly and Ben began to drift towards eachover and Bill started drifting towards other girls...

_...and to Richie’s annoyance, **Eddie**._

Before Eddie left for Poland before her 16th birthday, Bill had begun to fuss around her again like a damn chicken, asking if she needed someone to walk her from school in case Bowers was around. He asked if things were ok at home, if she ever needed to talk. Told her he was always there if she ever needed him...

**_?!??!!??!?!?!?!_ **

**_..Was he blind or something?! Was he unaware that Richie was Eddie’s to-go if anything was wrong? That she had been there for her the past few years in ways bill could never be?!_ **

_She wanted to strangle him again._

And fuuuuuuuck...

When Eddie came back from Poland it got so much worse.

Suddenly Bill was always around, acting like her fucking.. _Knight in armour_ or whatever.

Whenever some creep hit on her, Bill would find some way to get there before Richie and pretend to be her boyfriend. This was a fucking routine in school and out.

Eddie was always so fucking grateful which just made it worse.

After sending another sleazy guy away, Eddie would look up at Bill like he was some type of hero, her lashes fluttering as she quietly thanked him.

Things reached a new height the next year when she dated Estella.

Without **ANY** explanation, Eddie decided to cut her off.

For a whole month and a half, Eddie had completely blanked her.

**For no reason. None. Nada.**

Despite cutting Richie out, it appeared the girl had no problem hanging out with the others.

During one of the attempts she had made to visit Eddie, maybe climb up her tree and knock on her window like old times, she had seen Beverly and Ben climbing the tree. She wasn’t on speaking terms with her at that moment so she sighed and left.

To her annoyance, it was Mike and stan’s turn the next day, both their bikes perched against the tree.

Bills bike was there the next day.

Just Bills.

_Richie cycled home in fury._

That was the last attempt she made before Stella broke up with her and things kind of went back to normal.

Eddie and Richie sort of made up.

The small girl never really told her why she was so mad at her in the first place.

Bill got on her nerves at times.

Eddie got mad a little more often than usual nowadays.

Richie felt a tension whenever they were alone...

_Yup. Things were back to normal._

**........**

**Richie snapped out of it.**

Eddie was upstairs.

Her wrists were raw, bloody and covered in dirt.

_Eddie hates dirt._

Richie looked around for gauzes and found some, along with vaseline in a jar in the cupboard under the sink.

Along with the knife, she went out the kitchen and ran upstairs _(after quickly jogging to the front door and kicking it closed, after realizing she forgot to fucking close it when she came in holding Eddie.)_

Back upstairs, Richie opened the door to her room and almost drooled at the image before her.

Eddie was perched at the centre of her bed, her tanned legs curled to the side as she rested her back on the pillow mountain Richie had made earlier. Her lips were still swollen and red, the bites Richie made on her neck stood out deliciously on her skin.

She stared the tall girl down.

**Richie gulped.**

“I uh...Got the stuff Eddie” She said.

Eddie hummed in response, removing her legs from their curled position so that Richie could begin cutting at the rope.

She looked at Richie quietly as she climbed onto the bed and pulled Eddie’s feet onto her lap, beginning to grind the strings of the rope across the knife.

....

...”Eddie?”

Eddie perked up at her name.

She smiled.

_Richie’s heart went gooey._

“Yes?”

Richie cut the rope off, freeing Eddie’s legs. She began unravelling the gauzes, avoiding Eddie's eyes.

**“...Do you like Bill?”**

**................**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yes. Richie is big sexy yum dumb.
> 
> I was writing the finale and while looking over it i realized that it was WAY too long for one chapter so stay tuned for part 7!!!!
> 
> I dont remember the book but from the movies I felt some kind of power balance/rivalry between Richie and Bill so I wanted to carry some of that over in this fic! If It werent for Eddie, Richie would have had a lil puppy crush on Bill that would have lasted a week lmao...but Bill is small potatoes compared to Eddie spagheddi sksksk
> 
> HOPE YALL LIKED THIS CHAPTER AND TYSM FOR READING!! Yall leave such nice comments and it really inspires me to continue writing, I really appreciate it :')  
> Got some new Fem reddie stuff coming ur wAY!!
> 
> so please stay tuned for what happens next....It's Eddie's turn to answer some questions...
> 
> .....................................
> 
> I've started planning my succubus fic and have ch.1 drafted...but i may or may not already be planning a oneshot sequel for this fic...might be...nsfw..and a lil kinky..........stay tuned


	7. AnD tHeY weRe RoOmAtEs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE ENJOY THE FINALE!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> AND I HAVE AN ANOUNCMENT IN THE END NOTES SO PLEASE READ AND THANK YOU SO SO SO SO SO MUCH FOR ALL THE KUDOS AND COMMENTS YEEEEEHAAWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

**CHAPTER 7**

Eddie looked at her blankly. The playful look she had in her eye was swapped with confusion.

Then questioning.

_Then irritation._

“I don’t know if Henry scrambled your brains earlier **RICHIE** , but we were literally sucking eachovers **FACES** off like 10 minutes ago...Why would you even say that?!”

Richie’s cheeks tinged at the memory of it.

She sighed before taking out the Vaseline, beginning to dab it against the red marks on Eddie’s ankles.

Eddie hissed at the stinging pain as Richie delicately wrapped the gauze around it.

“...I’m just really...” Richie tried to find the right words, “...confused?”

Eddie got up onto her knees and held out her tied hands to Richie, who began cutting the rope around them as she continued to talk.

“Up till now you’ve never really shown any interest in other guys...and for a long time I thought you had this thing for Bill so I just don’t get why...-“

“How long is _A long time_?” Eddie looked at her, a brow raised.

Richie removed the rope and reached back for the Vaseline.

“...Uh....since 1ST Grade?”

Eddie’s voice hitched, her shock at this answer completely numbing the pain she felt on her wrists from the Vaseline.

**“YOU THOUGHT I HAD A CRUSH ON BILL FOR THE LAST 13 YEARS?!?! RICHIE WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK!?!?”**

Richie blushed slightly.

Eddie’s arms were free now and folded against her (thiccccc) chest. She looked as if she wanted to slap Richie. Richie tensed her teeth slightly just in case.

Eddie huffed a little, calming down after the third long breath.

“Richie... _Why_ would you even think that?”

Richie groaned, falling back onto the bed.

_The impact made the mattress bounce slighty; Eddie fumbled as she fell back against the pillow pile behind her._

_She scowled towards Richie._

“Dude...” Richie whined, “He was always around you. Always touching you and calling out to you and you’d follow him like a little puppy! It was fucking ANNOYING!!”

Eddie glowered at her, her arms pushing against the sheets so that she was looking over Richie where she was laying.

“Asshole...we were KIDS” She hurled back, “Have you forgotten that Bill was practically taking care of his two year old brother when he was SIX?! He used to tell me that his parents forgot to fucking feed them sometimes!!”

Richie perked at this.

_Bill had absently told the other loser’s that his parents were trash now and again, but she didn’t know it had been THAT bad..._

“After I told him how bad things were at my house he took me under **his FUCKING WING RICHIE. HE WAS LIKE A...LIKE A BIG BROTHER TO ME!!! I CANT BELIEVE YOU THOUGHT I-“**

“Wait a minute...wait a minute”, Richie cut in. “How about after that?”

Eddie puffed again. “After **WHAT!?”**

“After you came back from Poland...Bill got all weird.”

Richie looked turned her face away, her tone got lower.

“...you got weird.”

_Eddie heard that. And honestly, Richie had a point. She had a right to bring up how Eddie behaved when she found out that Richie was seeing someone. She had cut her out. It was wrong and Richie deserved an explanation._

**_But first she had to sort out this Bill nonsense..._ **

“Richie...” Eddie sighed. “I’m just going to say it.”

Richie turned over from where she was laying and looked at Eddie.

Eddie sighed.

**“Bill got weird because I came home from Poland with a phat ass and great tits.**

**That’s the reason. That’s it. I love Bill, but not like that and it’s the same vice versa, okay?”**

_The way Eddie had said that. So stern as she accentuated the “Phat ass” and confirmed that Bill was just a platonic horn dog which was...Alright._

_Eddie did in fact have a phat ass and great tits...so fair enough then!_

_That was that._

Richie was sent howling at this, her throat sore from yelling earlier, now raw from the wheezes of laughter.

Eddie was laughing too, tearing up a little.

She continued to talk as she snorted along with Richie.

“Bill’s not even my TYPE!!” Eddie giggled, “He’s wayyyy too sensitive about everything, plus the guy doesn’t know what banter is...”

Richie laughed, “Bruh...do you even HAVE a type!? That’s news to me!”

Eddie snicked in return. “Of COURSE I have a type dumbass!!”

_Richie’s laughter died down a bit. Her heart began to beat faster._

_She wanted to hear this._

“What’s your type then Eddie?”

Eddie’s face was red from laughing, her smile faltered at the directness of Richie’s question.

“Richie...”

**This was it. This was the part where Eddie was going to tell Richie that she kissed her out of gratitude. That she didn’t like her like that. That sexy little moan she made when Richie pawed at her like an animal was just her not thinking straight. She’s clearly still dazed from what happened earlier. Richie had technically taken advantage of her in her vulnerability.**

“Richie, I like...”

**Richie was no better than Patrick and Henry. She was disgusting and perverse. And ugly. And Annoying...and a fag...and if Eddie was in a right state of mind she wouldn’t touch Richie in a million years.**

**.......**

Eddie had edged herself towards Richie, Her small hands reaching towards the fists Richie was making on her lap. The tall girl didn’t respond to her touch.

Eddie’s soulful eyes began searching deep into Richie’s downcast gaze.

**Eddie needed someone who was strong and brave. Someone smart and funny, who knew how to treat her right.**

**Eddie was a princess...and Richie was no prince charming.**

Eddie abandoned Richie’s fists and clapped her hands on Richie’s face.

There was a loud smacking noise echoing across the room as Richie snapped back into her senses.

Her face fucking ached. It hurt SO BAD.

Eddie was undeterred by this, taking a second for Richie to get a hold of herself, before yanking her face to mirror her own.

**“...You Richie. I like you”**

Richie looked at Eddie’s face. Into the hazel curtains of her iris, her wrinkled brows and soft lips.

Richie felt her face grow hot.

Her head was throbbing. She couldn’t hide the falter in her voice.

“Eddie...no you don’t.”

Tears furrowed in her eyes, streaming down her face. She could feel her nose beginning to run.

“..You...your just confused Eddie...you...you don’t want me...”

Eddie continued to hold her face as she wept. She looked at Richie with a pained expression.

_Eddie hated to watch Richie cry._

The tall girl was beginning to hiccup as she gently gripped Eddie’s upper arms.

“Baby...” Eddie whispered.

She brought her face close to Richie, kissing her forehead. She then began kissing her cheeks softly.

Richie continued to cry quietly, her hold tightening at every kiss Eddie peppered onto her tear streaked face.

“Baby...baby don’t cry. I love you Richie.” She kissed the top of Rachel’s nose.

“I’ve loved you for a very long time. Way before all of this. I mean it Richie...”

She softly kissed Richie on the lips.

**“I love you”.**

Richie looked dazed.

Her eyes were watery and her mouth tingled where Eddie had kissed her.

She shook her head.

“You’re not like that Eddie. You’re not a fa-“

“Lesbian”. Eddie interrupted.

Richie blinked a few times.

“...What?”

Eddie let go of Richie’s face, sitting herself against the bed so that she was now looking slightly up towards Richie’s direction.

She smiled sweetly.

“I prefer the term _lesbian_ , when talking about my sexual preferences.”

Richie looked gobsmacked. Her jaw was practically on the floor beside her bed.

**“What the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck............................”**

“YOU...” Richie spluttered, “NO YOUR....YOUR NOT!! YOU DON’T LIKE.....BUT?!?! WHY DID YOU...WHEN ME AND STELL..?!?!

_Richie was all over the place. What the fuck?!What the FUCK!?_

_ Nothing made sense anymore!!! _

Eddie scowled at the mention of Estella.

“What!? She pouted, “You thought I’d be fucking thrilled to find out the girl of my dreams was dating an albino stick insect?! You fucking kidding me?!??!”

_Girl of my dreams...Richie was almost fucking hyperventilating..._

Eddie sighed.

“Look...” she finally resigned herself, “I know it was immature as fuck for me to ghost you like that when you and Stella were together...but I felt like such an idiot y’know?.”

Richie made a confused sound as she wiped her palms against her face and her nose.

“ **UGH**...okay okay...remember the kissing bridge? How sometimes people would write stuff on it...?”

_Richie remembered the kissing Bridge._

“...Well, I was there that day. And I saw you Richie.”

Richie looked at Eddie in alarm.

“You saw my carving?”

Eddie nodded.

“R for Richie” She said.

She looked down sadly.

“...and E for Estella, right?”

Richie laughed, breaking Eddie from her lament.

“BEEP BEEP, INCORRECT” Richie snickered. “TRY AGAIN IN 5 4 3 2...”

Eddie whacked Richie’s shoulder.

“Dude this isn’t FUCKING FUNNY”, she hissed. “All those years that I thought that E was meant for me...Do you have any idea how fucking stupid I felt when I found out you were dating Estella fucKIN...chICKEN SHIT?!

Richie snorted again at chicken shit, which lead to another whack.

Eddie began to sulk, the same way she used to when they were kids, her bottom lip sticking out as her face turned to the side, refusing to look Richie’s way.

Richie reached her hand out to Eddie’s chin, forcing the girl to look up at her face, which was now completely serious.

“The E was for you Eds. Richie and Eddie.”

Eddie looked into her face, as if she was searching for confirmation.

A small, teeny tiny smile formed from her pout.... till she sprang back into rage, whacking Richie furiously with her little hands balled into fists.

“THEN.WHY.DID.YOU.DATE.STAR.CHICKEN?!?!?!??”

**“YeeeeEEEEEOOOOOWWWWWWW!!!!”**

Richie literally had to catch Eddie’s flying fists, stopping her from causing any more damage to her (ALREADY) bruised body.

“Eds I didn’t think I even had a chance with you!” She argued, “I thought you were straight, remember!?”

Eddie glowered at her, her strength no match against the unbreakable hold of Richie’s hands _._

_(If she wasn’t so mad at that moment she would probably have marvelled over how sexy their power imbalance was....nghhhhhhnotnownotnownotnow...)_

Richie dropped her grasp of Eddie, the freckled girl startled (and a little...disappointed?) now she was free.

Richie sort of huddled into herself a little. She had an awkward expression on her face as she slowly dispensed the words that had been flying around in her mind.

“Plus...c’mon Eddie. Have you ever even seen me?” Richie waved a hand over herself, “I’m a fucking mess. No one in their right mind would want to be seen with someone like me”.

Eddie was confused by this statement.

“Richie what the fuck are you talking about now!?!”

Richie pulled off her glasses.

**“Look at me Eddie!! My nose is big, im scrawny and lanky and all my clothes don’t fit..I’m annoying!! ...and my teeth!? They’re massive...im like 98% calcium...and..AND...!!!”**

Richie stopped immediately at the sight of Eddie, whose fists were raised again in threat of attacking.

Completely sure that Richie’s tirade of self loathing was finished; Eddie looked Richie up and down.

_“Do you want to know what I see Richie?”_

Eddie suddenly melted forward, her free hands wrapping around Richie’s torso as she sat herself on the older girls lap.

Richie held her breath.

Eddie tugged at Richie’s arm and began feeling them up.

“I feel sexy strong arms...” She purred. “And beautiful big hands...”

At this, Eddie pulled up Richie’s right hand to her face and stuck out her tongue, giving her index finger a lick from the base to the tip.

_Richie felt herself getting wet._

Eddie powered on, her hands now brushing against Richie’s chest, over her hated triangle breasts.

Eddie nuzzled close to them. She could feel under her shirt that Richie wasn’t wearing a bra. She delicately thumbed against the material, over the older girl’s nipple. The friction made them stick out to her touch. Eddie looked up at Richie, who looked back down at her with complete infatuation.

“I love your breasts Richie...”Eddie confessed, “You always said you hated them, but whenever we went swimming at the quarry I couldn’t take my eyes off you..”

Eddie was caressing Richie’s breast with one hand, the other slowly snaking behind her neck.

Richie felt herself being lowered down to Eddie’s eye level.

Eddie released Richie and pushed herself into the space between them, her naked skin closely rubbing against where she had been touching the other girl.

Her face was full of love as she pushed her arm at the back of Richie’s nape, making her come closer.

Now mirroring eachover, Eddie pressed a soft kiss onto the tip of Richie’s nose, making her release a goofy smile (the one that showed the gap between her teeth, making Eddie feel soft and gooey inside).

“I love your nose”, She whispered.

She pressed another kiss onto her cheek.

“I love how your eyes are shaped like an almond”.

She pressed a kiss onto the other cheek.

“I love your kooky broken glasses and your stupid little jokes that still manage to make me laugh”.

_She paused, looking into Richie’s eyes (which were brimming with tears)._

**“And I love you, Richie”.**

_Richie sobbed._

**“I love you too, Eddie”.**

**The two girls kissed once more, their bodies pressed tight against the other as they became engulfed in the love and warmth inside of them.**

After what felt like forever, they pulled apart.

Richie was seeing stars as their lips parted with a slick sound. Eddie blushed, her tongue darted out to lick her lips.

She paused.

Bringing a finger to her mouth, she inspected the non-saliva substance on her finger.

She looked up at Richie with a raised brown.

Richie grinned back down at her in a dreamy daze.

_“YeS BaBy...? WhAtS tHA mAtTa?”_

Eddie sighed.

“...I think we need to get you cleaned up now, don’t you?”

Richie just nodded stupidly, not even noticing the blood that was beginning to drip from a cut on the side of her mouth.

“.....ThEn CaN We Ki-“

Eddie laughed.

“Richie, after we get you cleaned up we can kiss for as long as you want.”

Richie beamed, her heart bursting full of love.

_She liked the sound of that._

**_/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////_ **

****

**_Before they knew it, It was time to go to leave for University._ **

****

**_The past few months had been the happiest of Eddie and Richie’s lives._ **

**_They had watched their last movie at the Aladdin. Each had a full day’s war at the arcade to decide the ultimate winner...which happened to be Beverly, who completely wiped out every opponent until she was declared “Queen of Derry”, having finally defeated Richie at Street fighter and Mike at airball._ **

**_Having heard what went down at the barrens, the losers payed their dues to their childhood getaway from the kissing bridge._ **

**_As the others looked over to the edge of the barrens from the Bridge, Eddie and Richie stood before their carving._ **

****

**R+E**

**R for Richie. E for Eddie.**

_**Eddie had always known it was meant for her.** _

**Both girls looked at it. Studying how deep the mark had been cut into the wood. The risks Richie had taken the day she made it. The hope Eddie had felt when she saw it.**

**The love they had both felt back then.**

**And now.**

**And forever.**

**.......**

**Epilogue.**

Richie had been jittery the whole ride to the airport.

She had never really mentioned that she’d never been on a plane before. Nope. In the whole 19 years of her life, Richie Tozier had not once mentioned that she had never been on a plane.

And why would she?

I mean, what were the point of planes anyway? Weren’t boats good enough?! Where people so desperate to travel around that they HAD to come up with..idk..winged cars?!

Seriously what was the point of planes!? Planes are super dangerous not to mention **unnaTURAL HUMANS AERNT MEANT TO FLY WERE GONNA DIE WERE GONNA DIE WERE GONNA DI-“**

“Richie...” Eddie cooed. “Baby calm down, were gonna be fine...take a deep breath”.

Richie breathed in deep and exhaled. She softened at the small hand Eddie had wrapped around her waist.

She felt a little bit better.

An announcement was made on the loudspeaker and the two girls began to walk towards the line leading to the plane, pulling their suitcases along with them.

Richie felt the tension again as she caught sight of the plane. It was small.

“It’s cute, isn’t it?” Eddie smiled.

Richie grinned back. “Your cute”.

Eddie giggled as they climbed the metal railway to the entrance of the plane.

Once inside, they put their bags up and took their seats. Eddie made sure to have their seatbelts firmly strapped on and ready, despite them not being required to do so yet.

“Just to be safe”, the freckled girl smiled at her girlfriend, who gave her a small one back.

Eddie could tell Richie was scared from how little she was speaking.

The doors were shut, and after a quick demonstation about safety from an air hostess (which Richie and Eddie payed DEEP attention too), the seatbelt sign flashed and all passengers were seated.

The engine powered up and the floor began to vibrate slowly. Richie froze in her seat, panicking in silence as she saw the plane moving from the window, beginning to move faster.

She felt a touch on her hand, where it was gripping hard on the arm rest.

Eddie held her hand out to her.

Richie looked into her girlfriend’s loving eyes, then took hold of her small, warm hand.

She held it tight as the plane began speeding on the runway.

“Are you ready baby?” Eddie whispered to her, as they felt one half of the plane beginning to rise.

Richie rubbed a circle into Eddie’s hand with her thumb.

_“I was always Ready”_

_The two girls kissed as the plane flew into the sky._

_Past the clouds._

_Until finally._

_..._

_They were gone._

_The end._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it bad that I cried as I wrote this..?!?!?!?
> 
> Thank you all so so so so so mUCH!!!!! Im so happy that People enjoyed this!!! I REALLY ENJOYED WRITING THIS!!!
> 
> IM TAKING THIS OPPORTUNITY TO ANNOUNCE THAT I AM ABOUT TWO DROP TWOOOOOOOOO NEW FEM REDDIE FICS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> I have completed the prologue chapter for my Succubus fic "Angel in my Eyes!!!!"
> 
> and I didn't tell yall but Ive been obsessed with dark Richie fics...and I noticed that there werent any Fem dark richie fics so guESS WHO JUST WROTE THE FIRST CHAPTER OF A FEM DARK RICHIE FIC CALLED "BUNNIES BITE BACK!?!?!!?!?!?
> 
> I really hope you guys check them out and let me know what you think :')))))))))))))))))
> 
> "BUNNIES BITE BACK" AND "ANGEL IN MY EYES" WILL BE UPLOADED TOMORROW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> ILY ALL AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING!!!!!!!!!!! LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

**Author's Note:**

> UH OH SPAGHEDDIEOS


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